I couldn't believe she was being serious when a friend picked these and asked me to make them for her. They're the most fun pattern in Anna Tillman's book, and they look quite ridiculous when knitted to the pattern before felting.
In Jest slippers by Anna Tillman
This is the first time I've knitted a project for felting (deliberate felting!)
I couldn't believe she was being serious when a friend picked these and asked me to make them for her. They're the most fun pattern in Anna Tillman's book, and they look quite ridiculous when knitted to the pattern before felting.
I knew that knitted fabric shrinks when felting, but I'd no idea just how much. And of course this means that there's a lot of knitting to do. Even though they're knit on 5mm needles, each was like a full-length sleeve and seemed to take an age.
The result is so worth it. The felt is sturdy and thick and looks much neater than the original knitting. Here they are with my hand for scale - pull the other one, it's got bells on!
I couldn't believe she was being serious when a friend picked these and asked me to make them for her. They're the most fun pattern in Anna Tillman's book, and they look quite ridiculous when knitted to the pattern before felting.
Debra's Garden needle sizers and row counters
These Debra's Garden needle sizers are accurate and beautiful. I've stocked them for a long time at p2tog.com but have recently had low stock. Today a delivery arrived, so I have many of the colours in stock.
The needle sizers come in metric (2mm - 10mm with some quarter sizes) and sock/lace (0.75mm - 4mm with many quarter sizes).
Debra also makes these row counters / yarn cutters. The inner dial counts 1-10 while the outer dial counts 10's. in th 50 position, a blade is exposed which is a handy yarn cutter.
All of these items are fitted with a split ring and can be worn as jewellery, used as a keyring or zip-pull.
Debra also makes these row counters / yarn cutters. The inner dial counts 1-10 while the outer dial counts 10's. in th 50 position, a blade is exposed which is a handy yarn cutter.
All of these items are fitted with a split ring and can be worn as jewellery, used as a keyring or zip-pull.
I love casting on
... so I've done it twice in one day! It's the expectation, promise (or perhaps hope) of a wonderful finished project that's so exciting.
The second is only the gauge swatch. This is the speed-spun wool top from the previous post. It did floof up a bit with a wash and looks and feels so lovely. The gauge is just about right, a little small if anything (normal for me) I won't go up a needle size, just make sure that when I spin the yarn proper, I'll try to make it the tiniest bit fuller.
I won't use it white, I'll dye it before I knit and try to get exactly the same dark red as per the pattern:
The first new project is another pair of socks. This yarn is spun from Monet's Pond from picperfic, I did that during Tour de Fleece earlier this year.
I found the perfect pattern, Coralicious Socks by Paula McKeever:
The second is only the gauge swatch. This is the speed-spun wool top from the previous post. It did floof up a bit with a wash and looks and feels so lovely. The gauge is just about right, a little small if anything (normal for me) I won't go up a needle size, just make sure that when I spin the yarn proper, I'll try to make it the tiniest bit fuller.
Fast drafting experiments - part two
Still preparing for Spinzilla, this is part two of my drafting experiments using this prepared wool from Curtis Wools - it's really easy to spin and does half the work.
The resulting two-ply yarn may be a little too fine, I'll measure the WPI after washing and try a swatch. I could go three-ply for a very even yarn, or just spin a little thicker.
I read somewhere recently about someone splitting their fibre and pulling it through a diz. Because I want a nice, smooth (non-woollen) and relatively fine yarn for this project (below) this could be a fast way to make the yarn and be a suitable job for the Spinzilla week.
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| Ardelise from Knit Rhapsody |
The cardy I want to make uses sport-weight yarn, that'll be a long knit!
I found the diz a bit clumsy, but splitting the yarn down several times and then pre-drafting by hand in the usual way took no time and made the top ready to spin very quickly and evenly.
