casting on Madragoa

A few months ago Mum was given a bag containing a half-finished project and the accompanying balls of yarn. 

It was of interest to me because the yarn felt really special. I've temporarily misplaced the other balls and can't check a label but it has a good percentage of real wool.

The natural first thought was to complete the project but there were some problems with that. Several patterns were present but we couldn't establish which was being used. There were some mistakes in the work, and it was obviously being made to a specific size which would be unlikely to fit either of us. 

So I decided to use the yarn to knit a similar cardy in a style and size to suit me. I'm not sure how far the unopened balls will go, whether I'll have to also unravel the unfinished work, or even whether there's enough yarn to finish what I've chosen, but I've started anyway! (I have chosen something very open and light, so I think the yarn should go a long way.)

The pattern I've chosen is Madragoa by Filipa Carneiro. By coincidence the pattern shows one in a very similar colour but the style is one that I'll want to wear. The construction isn't straightforward but this is a plus because it keeps it interesting.  You start with the lacework at the back of the collar with a provisional cast-on, work so far one way and hold the stitches, then work from the provisional cast-on the other way for the same distance before adding picked-up stitches along the side of what you've done. That's where I'm at, and you can see that I'm about to add the markers.

'jelly roll' placemats finished

 I fell in love with this project when I saw it:

Schact's pattern is here.

I'm not a sewer and wasn't familiar with the term 'jelly roll' but the idea of weaving scraps of fabric cut into strips with a thin cotton warp appealed to me.

Mum had been given some cotton which she had tried to crochet. I felt it was perfect for my project and the quantity seemed about right, so she was happy to pass that on. After a rummage in my rag bag and not finding the colourful fabric I thought I might find there, she also sent me some scraps including a skirt which was perfect.

I'm not one for following patterns to the letter. I used the heddle that seemed most suitable which I think is an 8-dent. My rigid-heddle loom is the smaller (12") width. These pictures show the warping and the cotton.

I had to learn to hemstitch and I'm glad I have that skill under my belt now.

I wasn't particular about cutting the strips of fabric. The pattern gives 5/8" as the width of the 'jelly roll' strips, so I tried to bear that in mind but in reality it varied a bit. Of course it was going to roll so I didn't think a rough edge would matter, and it didn't.

I enjoyed the weaving very much. My selvedges became neater and the pull-in became less as I got through the four placemats that I'd planned. When I lost track of whether the heddle should be up or down, it was soon obvious, as you can see in the picture above, and was easy to backtrack.

The palette and pattern in the skirt played out nicely in the weaving. Most of the time it was compliant and rolled nicely so you see the right side of the material whichever way up the mat is.

More by luck than judgement, both the warp and the weft lasted almost exactly for the four mats, which 13.5", a size I decided on when the first one looked about right.

Here they are finished and in use.