|
Hi knitters. After a few successful hats and fingerless mitts, I am tackling my first sweater. It is this Bulky Neck Down Cardigan pattern. After drooling over yarn online and at my LYS, I decided to make it out of Patons wool roving from Joann for $30 instead of the $165 worth of yarn I want at my LYS in case it turned out awful. My question is is there a way to minimize felting/pilling/turning into a huge pile of poo poo when I am done with this thing and wearing it? I actually think it is turning out well and I like it. Should I just be resigned to the fact it will turn totally fuzzy in a couple wearings? I can handle that if that is the case. So, what is a good bulky yarn to make my second one of these out of? I find myself sitting at work dreaming about coming home and knitting. It's exciting to be excited about something as boring as two feet of stockinette stitch.
|
#
¿
Dec 14, 2013 03:58
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 00:31 |
|
|
Thanks for the advice Anne and Sodium; I kind of thought this might be a lost cause. I am going to finish this sweater, wear it the three times or whatnot and then maybe try to felt it and see if it will fit one of my kids' dolls or something. That or enshrine it as my first venture into actual clothing. That Cascade Venezia looks amazing. I think that by finishing this sweater and getting to know the ins and outs of the pattern, I will be able to justify buying something more expensive for the second try. Also, I will have the fuzzed out sweater for measurements if I need to make changes to the pattern for the second one because of needle size or whatever. It's way easier for me to do math if I have a visual aid. My next sweater is going to be http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pull-me-over which I want to do in cascade 220 superwash. That should go much better. I just have to wait and hope I get my usual X-mas bonus and then I am going on a yarn buying spree. I had no idea knitting was so addicting or expensive when I re-taught myself after learning as a kid. Back then I made a 1x1' garter stitch square and called it good.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 15, 2013 02:33
|
|
|
FelicityGS posted:Swatch the Cascade 220 superwash. It grows massively after a wash and dry, for whatever reason. I'm lucky my mother loves her now three sizes too big sweater, but it was still really frustrating. Oh for the love! How about Malbarigo Rios? I am such a yarn newbie. I want my next project to be easy as far as blocking and wearing goes. I have made peace with the knitting part.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 15, 2013 05:32
|
|
|
I am about 2/3 done with a pullover sweater and into the sleeves with DPNs. Man, I hate DPNs. I decided to order a 12" set of size 9 circs so next time I can wait longer until the torture of DPNs hits me. I don't like magic loop either, so I am guessing I will not try socks for a long, long time. While looking for tips on how not to hate DPNs so much, I came along a link to some really affordable yarn on Ravelry. https://www.springwools.com/index.php/buy-irish.html Apparently they ship for $5 worldwide? Has anyone ordered from these people before? I am having a really hard time not ordering 3500 yards of aran weight wool for $100 and knitting my whole family dorky matching sweaters.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 5, 2014 21:12
|
|
|
Yeah, I thought it would be too good to be true. And really, I would rather spend $100 to buy like half a sweater's worth of Tosh pashmina or something. It's just hard to explain that to my husband - why would I make a $150 sweater when I can buy like 6 at Target for that much?
|
|
#
¿
Sep 6, 2014 21:34
|
|
|
I agree with all of those points; it's just hard to justify that initial expense sometimes, especially because we are moving and need to save every penny. It doesn't help that I only want to knit sweaters, sweaters, sweaters. Here is what I'm working on, in Valley Yarns Northampton. I'm doing a throwback Vikings jersey type sweater. Next I plan on making my husband a sweater vest in some nice cheap Patons. I guess I can use that as a catalyst too - if he likes it, I'll need to make one in at least a superwash so he can wear it more often. 
|
|
#
¿
Sep 7, 2014 02:55
|
|
|
Bob Shadycharacter posted:Holy crap, I finished a thing! Wow, these are great. That handspun is super impressive.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 2, 2014 03:12
|
|
|
Anne Whateley posted:Another neat way to gradient dye (for funsies, not professionally) is to wind your yarn into a ball (not a cake), drop it into a dyepot, and pull it out before the dye penetrates to the middle. I did this semi accidentally. I was loving around with dye and got impatient and just threw a ball of merino singles in the pot. I don't even really want to unwind it because its so pretty the way it is.  Also yes, every yarn I make has dog hair and me hair in it. This is super obvious to me not in real life, but in photos.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 25, 2015 18:41
|
|
|
I've been making these in cowls and smaller for a scarf for my kid and also a headband to cover my ears while biking. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/squishy-soft-cowl-2 Using worsted or bulky they go really fast and I like the fabric it makes - they really are squishy.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 12, 2015 19:03
|
|
|
I've never been to a Steven and Stephen thing but live really close to the StevenBe store in Minneapolis. I should do a class there but honestly it's pretty intimidating. That place is amazing.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 13, 2015 03:20
|
|
|
Dr. Kloctopussy posted:Yeah, I'm not selfless enough to knit for anyone else. I want it ALL! That is awesome. Ultra Alpaca is great. I have some chunky laying around and I just want to sleep on a pile of it.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 24, 2015 17:10
|
|
|
Wandering Knitter posted:Just wanted to share with everyone that I managed to shove an size four bamboo knitting needle under my thumb nail. gently caress! Now I'm a little afraid to knit.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 10, 2015 22:28
|
|
|
So I've never done a KAL and I've never made a shawl, but I bought this pattern. I am a cheap rear end so I bought some KnitPicks bare to dye. I hope I don't hate this, but I love StevenBe and they sent me an e-mail about it and now I'm in so blargh!
|
|
#
¿
Oct 16, 2015 19:32
|
|
|
ackapoo posted:The sweater's done, but I need to weave in all of the ends and add the buttons. I am taking it up to Prescott this weekend, so I'll try to get better photos up there. This is fantastic! And I don't even get the Big Lebowski. I really have to try to watch it again.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 12, 2015 20:49
|
|
|
I have a co worker who had her scarf hanging with her coat and I could tell it was hand knit. I was excited, so I (maybe creepily) touched it. I was so sad to feel it was cheap acrylic! My name is HungryMedusa and I am a yarn snob.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 27, 2015 06:31
|
|
|
Sex Hobbit posted:People are posting finished Doodlers all over instagram, and as for me... High five, Doodler buddy, here's mine.  I don't know when/if I will go for clue 3. The idea of picking up 250 stitches or whatever is making me twitchy. I will have no excuse not to after I finish one quick xmas gift, but I feel like this thing is going to sit for a while.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 16:46
|
|
Jobs suck.
|
Here is what I have been doing to avoid picking up stitches on my drat doodler. I thought fingers would be more fussy, but this wasn't bad at all. Pattern is http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/flicker-fingers Made with my not favorite dyeing job on my spindle hand spun.  
|
|
#
¿
Dec 6, 2015 02:31
|
|
|
HelloIAmYourHeart posted:Back in November in the SASS thread I decided I was going to knit a Lumberjack Safety Hat with neon yarn and reflective thread. That is cool! I'm gonna have to get me some of that.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 27, 2015 21:25
|
|
|
Midnight Sun posted:Finished another Nancy! I'm so done with this pattern now, but I'm quite happy with this one though. This is beautiful. I'm starting to get the itch to knit another sweater ungh. My brother knocked up his GF and she is super sentimental. I was thinking of knitting a baby blanket for it. Am I crazy? I was thinking a nice superwash wool. Any thoughts?
|
|
#
¿
Apr 13, 2016 21:10
|
|
|
left_unattended posted:What about Sprout or Arboria? Sprout is great! I think I want to do that one. Now I have to decide if I am going to buy yarn or spin it. I have until december.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 14, 2016 03:34
|
|
|
Wow that yarn. Is it supposed to be camo? Anyone else falling for the Westknits MKAL trap again this year? I ended up not liking and not finishing the Doodler, but had fun somehow anyway. So I joined and went to the yarn store and accidentally spent way too much money. My family is gone Saturday so I figure I will drink beer, watch some terrible TV (probably 90 Day Fiancee) and knit the first clue. E: I just figured out Vogue Knitting Live is in my hood this year. Has anyone ever been? Is it worth $20 to go yarn shopping? I'm guessing not really, but maybe I should check it out. HungryMedusa fucked around with this message at 17:30 on Oct 6, 2016 |
|
#
¿
Oct 6, 2016 17:22
|
|
|
Anne Whateley posted:Thank you for those supremely . . . something sweaters. I think the one most likely to succeed today is "I'M A LUXURY," but I won't be testing that theory! I decided to go ahead and take a class tomorrow at VKL. I agree the "pay to shop" thing is bullshit, so in order to go to this thing I wanted to at least take a class. I am taking Debbie Stoller's double knitting class. I know I could figure the technique out myself with youtube, but it's a fun excuse to get out of the house and just make something for a while. I also plan on buying enough yarn for my next sweater, but if poo poo is too expensive I will bail. I llive in the Twin Cities, so I have good LYS coverage already. I am hoping to find a good deal on something, maybe from WEBS. We'll see. Aaand, holy poo poo those 80s sweaters! The banana guy looks a lot like my husband's friend so we will be saving that image for the right time to shame him with it. E: Went to VKL. I liked the class I took a lot. I now know how to double knit. If it comes back and there is a class I want to take, I would do it again. The merch area was OK; there were plenty of niche interesting vendors along with the bigger ones. Stuff was not cheap though. I ended up buying a sweater's worth of Tosh Vintage from WEBS and getting the 25% off was nice. If I wasn't in the market for a whole sweater of nicer yarn the marketplace would not have been worth it for me. HungryMedusa fucked around with this message at 00:03 on Nov 7, 2016 |
|
#
¿
Nov 6, 2016 03:30
|
|
|
If you could knit a sweater in any yarn, cost be damned what would it be? I am half way through a sweater in Tosh Vintage which I got a good deal on from WEBS when they came to Vogue Knitting Live. But now I am addicted to making myself nice sweaters, so I wonder what should be next. I also know I will get immediate sweater fatigue the second I begin the second sleeve so I will have plenty of time to save up for the next batch of yarn.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 12, 2017 21:28
|
|
|
Thanks for the yarn ideas, guys. There are so many yarnsto try! As Anne Whatley mentioned, the Tosh I'm using now is a dye mess. It's a darker color and bleeds all over me. My fingers are blue from knitting last night even after a shower. If I wasn't in vacation with nothing else to work on, I would have pre washed the yarn before winding it. I'm destined to be blue for now. Midnight Sun - your suggestion of 50/50 wool alpaca reminded me I picked up 5 skiens of Berrocco Ultra Alpaca like 3 years ago. It's very orange and I think I will try to overdye it, then see what goes with the new color and go from there. Here is my method of winding a center pull ball on a nostpinde at lunch at work  And my blue fingats, especially under the nails 
|
|
#
¿
Sep 15, 2017 01:39
|
|
|
Yeah I'm not super happy about this. I'm far enough along that I will keep going and then rinse the poo poo out of it, maybe end up cooking it in some citric acid water with some random fiber to soak some of the excess dye up. I won't buy Tosh again - especially the dark colors. E: I emailed Tosh and they got back to me pretty fast with a suggestion to soak it in a vinegar bath. I know it won't work but I appreciate that are responding at least. I'll do it and see where it goes from there. HungryMedusa fucked around with this message at 00:05 on Sep 16, 2017 |
|
#
¿
Sep 15, 2017 15:50
|
|
|
stab stabby posted:Ps, everyone, new Knitty, since it seems like a bit of a thread hobby to hate on it. Habanero looks comfy but Im not sure it would be flattering on my short fat self.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 1, 2017 01:31
|
|
|
Yeah that shawl rules. Congrats!
|
|
#
¿
Oct 15, 2017 23:47
|
|
|
Anyone ever try knitting with chainmail scales from The Ring Lord? I saw some on Ravelry and decided to try it out. I made boot covers. I think next time they need to be a little bigger to let the scales lay more flat, but it was a fun experiment. Way easier than weaving them into fabric with metal rings chain mail style.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 9, 2017 19:22
|
|
|
suddenly cats posted:I've made dice bags and fingerless gloves with scales from TheRingLord, I love them! There should be some pictures if you look back through my posts in this thread. I looked back, thanks. Those mitts are pretty awesome. Next I am going to try figuring out how many stitches go between the large sized scales.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 11, 2017 20:06
|
|
|
That drat Satyr posted:Hello, knitting thread! I have some of the knitpicks interchangeable and they are pretty good. They have a test set if you don't want to jump in for 50 bucks or whatever. The connections on them are pretty smooth, and I appreciate that they have short tips and small cords available because I hate dpns! Here is the sample set: https://www.knitpicks.com/needles/TRY_IT_Needle_Set-Majestic_Wood_and_Nickel__D91288.html
|
|
#
¿
Nov 13, 2017 02:38
|
|
|
My mother in law knit my daughter a sweater. It's cute, my daughter wore it on Christmas Eve and Christmas for everyone to see. The problem is, there is a hole in it already and I think I know why. My MIL repeated the story of this yarn several times. It's from the 60s and it's acrylic. She made it into something 30 years ago, then frogged it and just got around to knitting it again. Is acrylic that age apt to break? Would repairing this thing be futile?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 6, 2018 04:54
|
|
|
Sehkmet posted:Finished the blanket I started a little while ago - when stressed, I knit so much more and I am so stressed, ahahaha. Sorry you are stressed, but that blanket looks nice and squishy! I want to make a blanket but am still stalling on finishing my sweater!
|
|
#
¿
Apr 25, 2018 01:02
|
|
|
That’s a drat nice sweater. And a beautiful shawl, good cat and beautiful hat. I just finished a scarf for my kid’s soccer team. I wanted it warm, did not have the patience to double knit it and so I went with k2 p2. I kinda winged it on some of the letters while on vacation drinking beers but I think it turned out ok. 
|
|
#
¿
Aug 27, 2018 01:27
|
|
|
I don't have a go-to pattern, but I did make a couple of these with good success: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/basic-baby-hat I made one Santa themed with a pom pom for my nephew that was cute when it stayed on. He had a big head for a 6 month old - so when in doubt, go bigger! Anyone here doing the 10th anniversary Stephen West MKAL? I don't even wear shawls, but I have had fun in the past, so I am going for it. At the very least it should look cool on the back of my chair at work. https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/starflake-westknits-mystery-shawl-kal-2019
|
|
#
¿
Sep 19, 2019 02:47
|
|
|
Those sweaters rule! I haven't tried a different MKAL than a couple Westknits, and I don't watch a lot of British Baking shows, but maybe that would be a way to hook my daughter in to knitting finally. She loves the GBBS but when I taught her to knit, she quit after like 4 rows. Maybe we just need a goal to work towards.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 2, 2019 05:27
|
|
|
I agree - Midnight Sun, those are so beautiful!
|
|
#
¿
Apr 30, 2020 04:51
|
|
|
I finished my first sweater from hand spun. It is merino dyed and spindle spun by me. It took a year. I liked it so much I want to do it again! Sweater:  Like 1500 yards of DKish yarn:  I did buy an Electric Eel Nano wheel too. I haven't quite got the hang of it, but I am working with it to get another batch of sweater yarn. What without feeling safe to go anywhere but my back yard, I think I can probably do it by winter. And yeah, yarn barf sucks. I usually loop the hank around my laptop screen and wind into a ball from there.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 12, 2020 04:41
|
|
|
Thanks, knitting goons. I remember rolling my eyes when I first saw you can spin your own yarn. I can't get enough of it now! I really do wish I could have a sheep, but they are not allowed here. My current dog has tiny little greasy hairs and they would make a terrible yarn, but if the apocalypse really comes, might as well shave her down and go for it.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 14, 2020 20:22
|
|
|
I joined both. The new Ravelry shocked the hell out of me. I read about it on mobile and forgot to check it out. I don't hate it. I forget to visit Ravelry huge chunks at a time. My projects page is so sad.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 26, 2020 00:15
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 00:31 |
|
|
MarsDragon posted:
That is beautiful; what kind of fiber? I love it!
|
|
#
¿
Nov 28, 2020 19:07
|
|
