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GenericGirlName posted:FelicityGS: Popular patterns already have a lot of broken ground on Rav, too. From the pattern page, you can check out the comments, related forum posts, and especially other people's projects. Super helpful info there.
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Jul 8, 2014 02:11
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i like nice words
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Safari Disco Lion posted:I like this video here. She explains everything quite well. Thank you, that was a really helpful link! (I can't purl for toffee yet though even after watching the other video.) I found it much faster for knit, but I have to concentrate or it ends up a little too loose. That'll come in time, I imagine. Some day I may even try an actual pattern! It does help to think of it a little like crochet, however my ability to crochet is actually worse than my knitting...I'll keep trying!
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Jul 8, 2014 19:33
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And after two and a half months the ten-stitch blanket has grown hugely. It now measures more that two by two and a half feet, occupies most of my man-purse when I take it out to work on while on-the-go, and has turned out to be far heavier than I would have expected. Behold! Here it is in its unrolled glory, taking up most of my dining room table.  I am now on the fourth ball of yarn, and have discovered that the gauge of this yarn varies spectacularly from ball to ball and, indeed, from one section of one ball to another. It is a gorgeous yarn and I love it but it is driving me mad how unpredictably thin it can be. I'm terrified that it's just going to tear in half and ruin absolutely everything. There's a lot more variation from dye lot to dye lot as well - the centre portion is far darker and thicker than the rest of the blanket. I'm OK with the colour variation but god drat is the thinness driving me nuts. This is Red Heart Unforgettable in Dragonfly. Am I crazy here or is this normal for a yarn that isn't plied? It was ridiculously cold in my office today and I went so far as to cover my knees with this thing. It's far warmer than I was thinking it would be, which is great.
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Jul 9, 2014 02:09
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It's not unusual for unplied yarns, but -- not to be an rear end in a top hat -- quality issues of all kinds really aren't surprising with bottom-of-the-barrel yarns. I know a lot of people like Red Heart, but there's a reason it's the cheapest brand by a mile. Maybe it's the lighting, but I don't think the color variations are super obvious because there are already so many colors/shades up in there.
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Jul 9, 2014 02:19
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Anne Whateley posted:It's not unusual for unplied yarns, but -- not to be an rear end in a top hat -- quality issues of all kinds really aren't surprising with bottom-of-the-barrel yarns. I know a lot of people like Red Heart, but there's a reason it's the cheapest brand by a mile. Oh, I know it's not exactly a high-class yarn. My girlfriend really liked the colours and so do I, and we couldn't find anything that wouldn't break the bank that had the same slow colour changes. This thing will probably end up taking more than ten balls of yarn and cost was definitely a factor. I'm getting what I paid for. I'm also assuming this will partially solve itself as the blanket is used or washed, which will cause any sections that may have been spun too tightly to relax and fluff up a bit. The fact that acrylic is machine-washable was also a selling point because there are cats and the cats will barf all over everything given the chance. But mostly, those colours! 
Mad Hamish fucked around with this message at 03:02 on Jul 9, 2014 |
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Jul 9, 2014 02:59
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Mad Hamish posted:The fact that acrylic is machine-washable was also a selling point because there are cats and the cats will barf all over everything given the chance. But mostly, those colours!
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Jul 9, 2014 03:56
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Eeeh it being Red Heart isn't necessarily why the thinness varies so much. Noro is supposed to be top shelf stuff, but it regularly gets so thin I'm afraid it will break, too, and is part of why I've just stopped buying it.
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Jul 9, 2014 05:16
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Don't forget the free half pound of garden compost that every skein of Noro yarns comes crammed with. Seriously the amount of random sticks and twigs I've found in every skein of Noro Kureyon or Silk Garden I've used is astounding.
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Jul 9, 2014 05:21
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That would be the other reason why I don't get it anymore. I wish anyone else did colour combos I like so much, really, but I'll live. In more contenty news, I'm traveling in Estonia all month and may have acquired some goods~  The two balls of yarn on the left are slow colour change balls that will knit up fabulous for a little cowl. The WIP is actually the needles I bought--some hand turned dealios. Giant ball is a very squooshy blend that has a really slow ply change going on that I think looks great and I'm gonna make some new fingerless mitts and a matching cowl out of it I think. The little pouch is two skeins (50g each) of a yarn from some sheep in Estonia--it's a 2/44 yarn that's got just over 2400 meters in 100g. It's so soft and lovely and ugh. Also yes I bought a shawl I had the money budgeted for it and I knew I probably would I regret nothing. It doesn't really matter to me that I can make one just like it (and have).   I thiiiink that's the last that I'll be able to fit in my bags unfortunately. Siiigh. So much yarn and so little space 
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Jul 9, 2014 05:30
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Wow that shawl is beautiful, it's a wonderful thing to be able to buy someone's handknit! Also love the yarns, esp the color change one  Finished my socks with the unmatching inside-out heels actually the variegated yarn at the foot turned out to be a pink birch bark thing, it's pretty cool   and after whining and complaining in this thread about variegated yarn I then prompted bought the brightest crazy zauberball cuz that's what I do  
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Jul 9, 2014 07:42
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Oh those socks came out well! Maybe you should look for a slip stitch pattern for the Zauberball? That's what I tend to use my crazy variegated on, I think it comes out looking really pretty--the slipped stitches help keep it from pooling too badly.
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Jul 9, 2014 14:05
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After much introspection I've decided that I should contribute more to this thread. I shall do this by providing pictures of my "at work" project, that I just keep at my desk for knitting while very long and boring test cases are running. The pattern is Entrelac Scarf. I'm doing it on size 9s (ugh what a mistake) w/ Vanna's choice "purple print", which is a really nice yarn and doesn't have the texture of other vanna's choice yarns. It feels... springy? I dunno, but I like it a lot and I bought a lot of it at one point. 6/25  6/27  7/11  I thought it would be really clever for me to have this be the only project I work on at work and so I would finally finish a scarf! (A Knit scarf that is. I have crocheted a lot of scarves, but thats easy when done horizontally and on a big hook or something) But instead I am VERY bored with this project. So bored that I am longing for when I can go home and work on my elephant (no pictures as of yet since its not very interesting or anything). I think I'm just going to settle for a cowl or something for the Entrelac Scarf because I just DONT want to keep doing this? But also it is too wide, probably because I'm doing it on 9s. Now that I have moved to a new place and scrapped/finished all my projects before moving I want to actually finish everything start... I have already started and frogged a pair of socks for gauge reasons, and now the yarn is a tangled mess and I have given up.
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Jul 11, 2014 16:42
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I just ran across this pooling project/article links http://www.dayanaknits.com/2014/01/RowanFineArtAranPlannedPooling.html  Gonna be measuring all my variegated yarn tonight...
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Jul 11, 2014 21:13
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Mad Hamish posted:
Yeah, just remember to set it to the delicates cycle if you're worried about breakage. Honestly you should be fine. If you give it a bit of a tug at the thin bits, it'll break while you're working so you have a chance to mend it before it's three rows behind you and difficult to tie off.
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Jul 12, 2014 05:32
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Safari Disco Lion posted:Don't forget the free half pound of garden compost that every skein of Noro yarns comes crammed with. Seriously the amount of random sticks and twigs I've found in every skein of Noro Kureyon or Silk Garden I've used is astounding. Despite this, and the variation in thickness, and the fact that i think it usually looks far better in the skeins than when actually knitted....I still keep buying it. I'm working on quite a collection of patterns that I think I can use it with, but I might resort to just hanging the skeins in my house or something.
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Jul 12, 2014 05:41
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Dr. Kloctopussy posted:Despite this, and the variation in thickness, and the fact that i think it usually looks far better in the skeins than when actually knitted....I still keep buying it. I'm working on quite a collection of patterns that I think I can use it with, but I might resort to just hanging the skeins in my house or something. They make really eye-catching coffee table center pieces. When I had a few balls all the nonknitters flocked to it.
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Jul 12, 2014 07:06
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My partner wants me to make him another knitted hat. I made him one a few years ago, but it is too warm for the Bay Area "winters". How do you make a less-warm knitted hat? What would be a good fiber to use? I don't think he's going to be super keen on a very lacy hat, and I'm not sure how else to de-warm-ify it.
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Jul 13, 2014 19:41
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You can make it in a thinner yarn, like a sock yarn. Non-wool fibers will also be cooler, like cotton, linen, or even acrylic.
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Jul 13, 2014 20:01
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Dr. Kloctopussy posted:Despite this, and the variation in thickness, and the fact that i think it usually looks far better in the skeins than when actually knitted....I still keep buying it. I'm working on quite a collection of patterns that I think I can use it with, but I might resort to just hanging the skeins in my house or something. I have this going on with Brooklyn Tweed Shelter. I hate the pretentiousness of the stuff, the massive amount of vegetation in it, the fact that it breaks if you look at it mean, it's infuriating to work with but I CAN'T STOP BUYING IT because the finished stuff once it's worked up looks so amazing. I'm working my way through a fisherman's sweater right now in a sort of rasberry jam looking colorway and the cables pop so hard and beautifully it'd make you cry. You can cable in pretty much any colorway because of that.
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Jul 13, 2014 20:28
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Well this is upsetting. I met her at Stitches this year and she was super sweet and seemed passionate about her work. Her yarns and colors some of my favorite - and it seems like too many dyers have closed their businesses in the past year or so.
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Jul 15, 2014 17:54
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Well, that will teach me to hold off on buying yarn from small dyers I want.
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Jul 15, 2014 23:47
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I'm obviously not an expert on small-scale commercial dyeing...but it was impossible to hire a 20something to put 3 ml of blue in one pot and 5 ml of red in another pot and smush them around a little? Even if she only developed new colors annually in January? I also kinda wonder if/how this is related to the Sanguine Gryphon split.
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Jul 16, 2014 00:35
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Yeah, uh...professional hand-dyers are a little more involved than hobbyists at home with a pot and some Kool-Aid are. It takes a lot of practice and skill to obtain consistency when you're making the types of colorways we're talking about here. Plus there's all the other aspects of running a retail and wholesale business, which I've witnessed get the better of people who don't have to deal with serious chronic health issues.
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Jul 16, 2014 04:00
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Anne Whateley posted:I also kinda wonder if/how this is related to the Sanguine Gryphon split. Okay, so I've been super curious how/why they split and for what reasons...because they had the same bases? But others were different? My Google-fu wasn't working when I researched it last.
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Jul 16, 2014 04:51
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... well, that'll teach me to be out of the country for a year. Maybe I'll see if a friend can order some of the last bits for me.
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Jul 17, 2014 16:50
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Here are some socks! Socks, Again by effika, on Flickr  Socks, Again by effika, on Flickr Modeling wool socks in 90F weather  I really like how one of the socks pooled. I was working from two ends of the same center pull skein so I expected variations in pooling, but not to that extent! Yarn is Saki by Prism Colors in Thunderclap and is a good soft, yet sticky, sock yarn. Hardly any excess dye ran out when I blocked them, too! Pattern is Two Toe-Up Socks on One Circular Needle from Silver's Sock Class. Her instructions are really good for first-time magic loop wranglers, and is so easy I had it memorized after the second pair of socks I made with it. Ravely project link for all the details.
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Jul 22, 2014 03:05
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Those came out great!
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Jul 22, 2014 07:03
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I started a KnitPicks Hue Shift Afghan two years ago, when the kit first came out. Last night I finally finished the first quarter  I have got to work on this thing more often.
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Jul 29, 2014 18:49
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I started one of those for the Ravellinic games. I didn't even make it through one quarter. I'll probably pick it up again once it cools off outside.
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Jul 30, 2014 07:12
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I finished mine not too long ago, actually. If I can find some pictures, I'll post them. I actually really enjoyed that project-- it got me through a really boring month-long class I had to take for work.
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Jul 30, 2014 23:50
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FelicityGS posted:Those came out great! Thanks! Sex Hobbit posted:I started a KnitPicks Hue Shift Afghan two years ago, when the kit first came out. Nice! It's so bright and sunny. I love mitered squares for mindless knitting. I used 1088yds of only one color, and mine took 16 months. Persevere, you'll love it in the end. Well guys, I finally started a Clapotis, using a hank of Shimmer from the Knit Picks "cool" sample laceweight pack from years ago. It's going to be deliciously soft, but I'm not sure the color (Bayou) is for me. Somebody may be getting a very nice Christmas gift.
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Jul 31, 2014 02:51
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First knitting project I've actually finished (other than plain scarves and one sock): a cowl for my seven month old. (First time posting a picture to SA from the phone app. Hope I'm doing it right....)
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Aug 4, 2014 01:02
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Kyth posted:First knitting project I've actually finished (other than plain scarves and one sock): a cowl for my seven month old. (First time posting a picture to SA from the phone app. Hope I'm doing it right....) So stinkin' cute.
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Aug 4, 2014 02:43
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I spun 45 yards of fingering weight yarn to make into a baby hat. The fiber came as a sample with the things they bought as decorations for their wedding, so I want to turn it into a hat for their baby. I haven't found patterns with good yardage estimates that aren't in the 100-150 yard range for super complicated cables or lacy leafy patterns. Is this possible?
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Aug 4, 2014 04:55
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Kyth posted:First knitting project I've actually finished (other than plain scarves and one sock): a cowl for my seven month old. (First time posting a picture to SA from the phone app. Hope I'm doing it right....) Oh my god, that is adorable.
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Aug 4, 2014 06:22
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Valdara posted:I spun 45 yards of fingering weight yarn to make into a baby hat. The fiber came as a sample with the things they bought as decorations for their wedding, so I want to turn it into a hat for their baby. I haven't found patterns with good yardage estimates that aren't in the 100-150 yard range for super complicated cables or lacy leafy patterns. Is this possible? I use 180 yds for my size 6 socks and I am guessing that a baby hat might be like the area of 1 sock? What about using your spun as stripe accents? e: This one says 50-100yds jomiel fucked around with this message at 18:15 on Aug 4, 2014 |
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Aug 4, 2014 18:08
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jomiel posted:I use 180 yds for my size 6 socks and I am guessing that a baby hat might be like the area of 1 sock? What about using your spun as stripe accents? Stripe accents is a brilliant idea. I had thought of supplementing it with a different color cuff, but not stripes. I guess that means I need to spin up some more yarn in a coordinating color then. Edit: Found more red fiber and some gray fiber to spin and ply together. Now I have another bit of coordinating yarn, but my niddy noddy is full of another spinning project so I have to wait to finish it and actually do the knitting. GUESS I NEED ANOTHER NIDDY NODDY. My fiber art supplies are getting out of control. (I know, I know, just wind it on my arm or a chair or something. But... a second niddy noddy...) Valdara fucked around with this message at 20:39 on Aug 5, 2014 |
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Aug 5, 2014 02:17
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Valdara posted:Stripe accents is a brilliant idea. I had thought of supplementing it with a different color cuff, but not stripes. I guess that means I need to spin up some more yarn in a coordinating color then. Have you thought about making one out of PVC? I love mine, was way less than buying one of course, even with buying the cutting tool, and it was super simple. I didn't use the O-rings and it's fine.
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Aug 6, 2014 13:07
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zamiel posted:Have you thought about making one out of PVC? I love mine, was way less than buying one of course, even with buying the cutting tool, and it was super simple. I didn't use the O-rings and it's fine. I've made many things of PVC for my classroom, and I hate the stuff. It often gets the job done, but the final product is almost always of far inferior quality to one made by someone who makes such things for a living and ALWAYS always duper uglier. My niddy noddy has an interchangeable center stick for 1, 1.5, and 2 yard skeins, is really pretty, and was packaged with a spindle for $18 including shipping. Once you add in time spent traveling to/from the hardware store and fooling with measuring and sawing the pipe and probably (if you're me, which I am) having to re-measure and re-cut a few times when it doesn't give true to length skeins, the eBay route becomes significantly cheaper, plus I just have a wait a few days and can spin and knit in the meantime without having to clean up a bunch of pipe dust or deal with leftover PVC taking up space. I used to DIY everything just on principle, but I can't afford to do that with my schedule and health anymore. Now my swift, made of an empty wine bottle, four hangars, and some tape? That I DIY'd in a heartbeat because I didn't have to leave the house to get materials and the cheapest swift I've found that isn't utter trash is still about $65, so gently caress that noise. Free swift that requires occasional fiddling works for me.
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Aug 7, 2014 04:19
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If you can get the free shipping deal buying a babes pvc niddy noddy was a good compromise between making one and the time spent, or buying a more expensive one.
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Aug 7, 2014 19:59
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