May Studio

Three hats for Veterans

2010-10-03T15:05:00.000-07:00

In the town I live, there is a group of ladies who organized Brookline Keeps Smiling and I decided to join in to help out a little. I knitted these hats with my leftover yarns in Aran and worsted weight and using a free pattern from Drops Design.

The original hat is designed for their super bulky yarn with 7 stitches per 4” gauge and I made adjustment for the yarns I used. I used 5.5 mm and 7 mm needles for all versions.

Beige version: Aran weight smooth wool with Aran weight mohair yarns, about 150 yards each.

Pattern: Cast on 68 stitches with both yarns held together and with 5.5 mm needles. Purl one row. The edge stitches are done with garter stitches throughout. Knit with one-by-one ribbing for 10 rows. Switch to Brioche stitches and with 7 mm needles and knit for 36 rows. On row 37 reduce 11 columns evenly, and on row 41 reduce 7 columns evenly. On row 45, k3tog, 10 stitches remain. Pull stitches together and sew the side seam.

Purple/Grey version: Tahki Donegal Tweed in purple and Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Worsted in grey.

Pattern: Cast on 68 stitches with both yarns held together and with 5.5 mm needles. Purl one row. The edge stitches are done with garter stitches throughout. Knit with one-by-one ribbing for 6 rows. Switch to Brioche stitches and follow the same instructions as above.

Red/Black version: Tahki Donegal Tweeds in red and black. I had considerably less red yarns and had to make this hat smaller than the previous two.

Pattern: Cast on 68 stitches with both yarns held together and with 5.5 mm needles. Purl one row. The edge stitches are done with garter stitches throughout. Knit with one-by-one ribbing for 6 rows. Switch to Brioche stitches and with 7 mm needles and knit for 32 rows. On row 33 reduce 11 columns evenly, and on row 39 reduce 11 columns evenly. On row 43, do k3tog. Pull the remaining stitches together and sew the side seam.

My DDs modeled them for me. Thanks girls!

Donna Karan 1159 and rant

2010-09-12T16:33:00.000-07:00

Another Vogue pattern dress by Donna Karan. I used a very drapey viscose knit print from my stash.

I read in PatternReview.com that some notches do not match. So, I went carefully examining instructions and drawings both. Also, many complained that the armholes are too deep. So I revised armhole lines as shown below in red, and applied stay tapes along the armholes.

My fix worked fine as shown on my dress form. However, I could have done better by making the following changes in both back and front armholes so that the bottom of the armholes do not sit towards front bodice.

Now, I must document what I observed on instruction sheet below. There are several instructions and drawings which are not correct.
Step 18: Another blogger mentioned it as well. To sew the lining and the dress piece together, one must place the right side of lining and wrong side of the back body section together. Otherwise, the wrong side of the lining will be against your legs.
In step 21, the drawing shows that the pleated front skirt section is sewn on to the right side of the lining. Well, it should be the wrong side.
There is an error on step 3, but you do not notice it until almost at the end, step 26. Step 3 have you fold over one of the edges along the shoulder line. Judging from the pattern sheet and the drawing, I folded the shoulder side.

In step 25, notches were not matching. No big deal, I thought. After all, step 23 confirmed what I did in step 3 was correct.

Then, in step 26 what do I see?

The folded edge on Step 3 should have been the neck side. This made sense to me. As you wear the dress, the front has a nice folded edge and it looks smoother when the neck edge is folded over at shoulder as well. Now this can be easily fixed by undoing Step 3 and fold the neck edges over. Well, not quite. When you do so, the pleats along the shoulder seam are now displaced: they are not centered as they should be. In order to correct it, one must start with the pattern piece and move all the marking for pleats about 1cm towards the center of the pattern piece, fold the pattern sheet along the new pleat lines and re-draw the upper edges accordingly.
Although I am quite happy with the dress and the misplaced pleats are not that bothersome, I’ll have to tackle this pattern again.

Harmonie Stripes

2010-09-05T06:44:00.000-07:00

This cardigan is a modified version of Harmonie from Rowan’s The Milk Cotton Collection. Its fabric is knit with two-row stripes with slip stitches. Slipped stitches produces considerably thicker fabric. The row gauge here was 50 per 4 inches. My thought was that this fabric would not suitable for a pullover but great for a jacket or cardigan. I also had a large leftover stash of cotton and cotton blends in DK weight.

The only new yarns I had to get were in lilac pink for front and collar bands and stone for the finished version. In between, I tried with other color schemes which included dark green and plum. They did not look right among my other pale colors. So, they were out.

When I try a new stitch pattern, I usually start with a sleeve to test and it was knitted per pattern instruction. For bodice parts, I wanted to add more side shaping and length, which was accomplished by measuring my favorite tee shirt and calculating row and stitch counts. Once that is done, the back was knitted. With the back bodice on the dress form, I decided how deep I want the front neck line to go down. More calculation was followed. I made the front wider by the width of the front band.

I am quite pleased with the result.

Habu Textiles

2010-08-26T15:24:00.000-07:00

This was my first visit at Habu Textiles. Thanks to my friend Mari who took me around in NYC, I could cover five yarn stores in one day. Thank you very much Mari. My highlight of the day was definitely Habu. I had prepared myself for the visit with Setsuko Torii's book weeks before: what to knit and what to get. But the shop offers so many yarns which are completely unknown to me that I was not sure at all what to do with them. Seeing garment samples were definitely helpful. In the end I decided to go with my original idea of purchasing yarns for Ms. Torii's colorful cardigan. It is knitted with cashmere yarns but I decided to go with merino yarns. I chose six colors per instructions by Habu staff, and they assembled my kit. Since the merino yarn was much thinner than cashmere yarn, each ball was composed of four strands: two each in two colors or four strands in single color. One ball in dark green was done with two strand only and it is for front and neck band. I requested for 10% extra yarns.

Habu Kit with Extra Fine Merino yarns in six colors

The above photo shows colors A through O in four strands and color a in two strands. My colors were red, orange, chartreuse green, light brown, beige and dark green.

Now to swatching. Using 5.5 mm needles per instruction, I cast on 25 stitches and knittted two rows each in all the colors: A throug O. Looks really loose, too loose, actually. I've never done such loose knitting before and was really nerveous.

Before felting

After felting

After felting, though, the fabric fluffed up quite alot and you cannot see the table's surface through stitches, though it is rather loose compared to other hand knitting I've done. I've never careated such a fabric before. It is definitely new. Do I like it? I think I do. The garment will be very light weight and soft.

My row gauge after felting was almost at target, but my stitch gauge was a bit off. To make sure that the garment does not turn out too large, I will be using 5 mm needles.

Jiutepec from Cornelia Tuttle Hamilton's "Noro Eternal"

2010-04-01T17:50:00.000-07:00

As soon as “Noro Eternal” came out, I fell in love with Jiutepec for its design and yarns: Noro Iro and Silk Garden. In case you did not know, I just adore Noro yarns. Of course, it helps that the model is showing off the garment so stylishly. In any case, Jiutepec's knitting process caught my eyes. Ms. Hamilton's previous books also included a design with holes and I wanted to try them on a garment. Also interesting is that the garment is knitted with size 7 mm needles throughout even though Iro is very bulky and Silk Garden is worsted weight. I had yarns in my stash for more than two years before I started the project this year. Thinking back, I did not jump into this project immediately because I was unsure about the success of the garment. For one thing, I was not quite sure which cast on method I should employ for holes. Once decided that simple loop cast on will do, I felt more comfortable and started the project. I wanted my cast on edges to be soft and not bulky.

This garment is knit side-way: Starting at right front band, and proceed to right front body, back body, left front body, and left front band. I was happily knitting along until I hit left front neck shaping. It did not look the same as the right neck shaping. I think the right front neck shaping is not correct and that's what you knit at the beginning. There is no way I would undo all the way to the beginning. I wish I had checked the pattern before I casted on. When the right neck shaping is followed, I would have a very odd neck opening with back neck width of hardly 2". My neck is not that skinny. If you follow the left neck shaping, it would be about 4" which is more reasonable. Since I did not want to undo all the knitting, I compromised to use the right neck shaping. In order to produce enough back neck width, front shoulders were eased somewhat when sewn onto the back shoulders. This fudging seems to have worked.

There is one more issue to this pattern on the ribbed edges. When they tell you to repeat two rows 6 more times, one of the two repeated rows involve increasing two stitches every 5 stitches. If followed as instructed, the ribbed edging will become quite voluminous which is not what you see on the garment photos. Obviously, the referred row is not the one to repeat. I proceeded to do k4-p3 ribbing for 12 more rows.

The amount of yarns used for the smallest size were the following: 2.5 skeins of Noro Iro in Reds,2 skeins of Noro Iro in Grey/Browns, 3 skeins of Noro Silk Garden in Grey/Browns.

I love the jacket and my friends do, too. I don’t mind knitting up another one in different colors!

Vogue 1087 and Angelina Vintage Jacket

2010-03-04T19:05:00.000-08:00

I needed something to wear to a company party last December. I have piles of gorgeous fabrics and patterns, and I hate shopping for dresses since it takes too much time. It also takes a lot of time to sew one myself. You are saying I knit a lot. Why not sew instead of knit? Well, I can knit in the living room with my family, but I cannot sew there. I can cut pattern pieces there, but that’s just about it. Another problem is that I am completely out of practice in matching fabrics to patterns. Yes, it takes time to do this matching, at least for me. Having a lot of each does not help, either. I almost gave up in the idea of a brand new dress for the occasion. I did some fixing in preparation and have a nice wearable pullover. It might be okay for the occasion? Maybe. If only I had time to contemplate, … .

Then I remembered. I’ve been in love with Vogue 1087 since it came out. I knew there were some issues with the pattern thanks to bloggers I ‘met’ at Sewing Pattern Review. I had two yards of beautiful burned out velvet in black/raspberry/mauve/burgundy colors. Slowly, I started the project. Some of the drawings on the instruction sheet did not make sense. No matter. It must have been an error. I’ve been knitting long enough to trust my gut feeling. Pictures and drawings can be flipped by mistake and cause confusions if the garment is not symmetric. I knew that. Well, I did okay in the end.

Now, to complete the outfit, I borrowed my daughter's cashmere cardigan for the occasion. But I knew I could knit something really nice if I had time. It is Angelina Vintage Jacket by Joan McGowan-Michael. I've had the charcoal gray Peruvian Quechua from Elann.com for this project for a long time. The yarn feels really soft, light and warm due to its blend of alpaca and tencel. Although it involves quite a lot of 2-by-2 rib which I do not like very much, it went rather fast. I followed the pattern mostly except for smoothing out increases and decreases for sleeves and shortening sleeve edges.

Colourscape Folk Collection

2010-02-20T19:49:00.000-08:00

After knitting the last pullover with Rowan Colourscape, I discovered "Colourscape Folk Collection." It has at least three garments I'd love to knit: Bobbie, Drew, and Polly. Drew was just what I was looking for, although I like it to be a bit longer. I love its subtler variation of colorway Misty: not as spectacular as the VK pullover and actually quite tame, yet, eye-catching. Likewise, brown/reds/rust in Autumn colorway is nice. I've been thinking that I need to knit what I can wear to my office. You see, my boss does not approve jeans at any time and I suspect he likes us to wear business suit type clothes. I thought Drew is just the right mix of playfulness and seriousness.

Another issue for my work clothes is that it cannot be too warm. My office tends to heat up too warm and long sleeve cardigans and pullovers I've knitted are not quite useful in the office. Something like Drew or Bobbie, a cap-sleeved cardigan, are just right.

Now, Polly. I am attracted to this pullover for both colors and the design although it may not be office appropriate. I love those deep colors of Ghost colorway.

To start with I knitted Drew with some changes.

I made it wider at the bottom edge and longer with more side shaping. Instead of just stretching the garter edging, short rows were added where front neck shaping starts and at back shoulders. Instead of making two button holes, only one was made to accommodate a beautiful metal button I found. After a few wearing, I thought I could have added more side shaping, but that will be for another time, if at all.

VK Colourscape Pullover by KF

2010-02-13T10:14:00.000-08:00

As soon as I opened the new VK magazine, I noticed a pullover by KF. I love stripes to begin with. KF's dolman sleeve pullover has a diagonal twist to it. And, the colors! I began obsessing over the design. The only thing prevented me from jump right into the project was the dimension of the garment: bodice was too short and sleeves were too long for me. As always, I started tinkering with the design dimensions.

Based on a Rowan pullover with huge kimono sleeves I knitted a few years ago, I decided on the dimensions and did some calculation to determine stitch and row counts. I must say I was lucky this time and my numbers all worked out.

Silk Vintage Dress

2010-01-09T11:12:00.000-08:00

Something I made back in 2005 with Vintage Vogue 2401 pattern using red and black cross-woven silk dupioni.

With collar up.

Vintage Vogue 2401 is a reproduction from 1952. I have serveral of Vintage Vogue, but this one was the first re-production I tried. I love its vintage style with a modern flair. One thing I did not expect is that there is no zipper on this dress. How do you put it on? The skirt has two sections with each section attached to front or back bodice. The sides of the back bodice extend forward and tied in front, while the sides of the front bodice have belting pieces attached with hook or eye. As a consequence, one might experience embarrassing moments when a wind blows your skirt pieces apart.

So as not to be concerned about this potential mishap, a piece of seam binding tape was attached to connect the front skirt edge and the corresponding side seam of the back skirt on the right. On the left, the same tape was attached to the left side seam of the back skirt, but snapped on to the left front skirt edge.

Front skirt with seam tapes sewn at sides.

Left side

I'd love to make another one from this pattern with one modification: add a zipper in the back to allow easier dressing, one of those inserted in the middle center back, a few inches below the collar. As is, it is quite a struggle to put it on and off. Of course, loosing some pounds would be a great help.

Dava asked about the shoes I am wearing. Here is a close up of them. They are dark red patent leather high heels with silver buckles by Aerosol from several years back. Perfect for the vintage dress.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T12:42:00.001-08:00

Here is something I finished last year after a long hibernation.

I love the colors and the wavy stitch pattern in stripes: waves, stripes and vivid colors are my weakness.

The idea came to me in early 2004 and by the summer of the same year, I had the sweater knitted up, took some photos, then … , the garment was packed away. I was meaning to save the project which turned out to be too large on me. I meant to do so for five years. Until last November, in an attempt to bring myself back to sewing, I decided that I do this fixing first. I undid almost all the seams except those on shoulders. Instead of cutting off the knitted fabric, I opted to sew with a wider seam allowances as this is a very soft and light fabric.

Love the bell-shaped sleeves.

Why didn’t I fix this thing earlier? I did not know this actually, but it was to have something lovely for the New Year!

Sheila asked about the yarn I used. They are the following in the order of knitting from the bottom hem:
1 - DS(Douceur et Soie) 19 (dark purplish red),
2 - KH(Kidsilk Haze) 600 (dewberry, mauve),
3 - Kids Seta (light blue),
4 - DS 2 (ivory),
5 - DS 20 (blue),
6 - KH 604 (light brown),
7 - KH 595 (dark red),
8 - KH 603 (white), and
9 - Kids Seta (chocolate brown).
Yarns were doubled through out.

Big Slouchy Hat

2009-12-02T17:44:00.000-08:00

I always had problems with hats. They look funny on my head while my DDs could look perfectly fine with the same hats. I don't recall ever having one that made me smile. Like my aunt said when I was 10 or 11 year old. She thought I was wearing my hat 'wrong' and kindly tried to fix it. She fiddled this way and that for a while, but in the end she gave up and mumbled something like my head is not a hat head. So, I knew this fact for almost all my life.

Then, one day I met one that did not look funny. It was a knitted hat, bulky single ply yarn in acrylic 100%. It was on sale for about $12. I said to myself, I'd better buy this one and knock it off!

So far, I made four, two of which went to my DD2. I am still working out the secret of this hat. Why it looks fine but not the others?

Harrisville Designs

2009-05-01T20:49:00.000-07:00

During the school vacation week, my family visited Harrisville, New Hampshire. I am smiling because I purchased beautiful yarns, three-bag-full, together with some books.

Orange XOXO Cardigan

2009-04-09T18:36:00.000-07:00

DD2's been looking for a long and roomy cardigan for a while. We could not find one in children's, teens’, or women's clothing stores around here or on internet. She has a relatively clear idea on how it ought to look and feel, and that makes it impossible to find the exact one. So, I decided that she needs my help.

We started with yarn selection: not scratchy wool, not a bulky yarn, soft and delicate, and in orange, her favorite color. We ended up with acrylic/wool blend in bright orange from Bergere de France. I purchased a pattern CD and ordered the yarn for her last fall.

Next, pattern. Not quite willing to design the whole cardigan from scratch, I looked for girls' cardigan/pullover patterns. Even if DD2 was not quite sure about the photos I've shown her, I decided to order a Phildar Enfants issue. There are two designs I thought might work for her ideas. Design 14 with lots of 1-by-1 ribs but roomy lower bodice and Design 4 with some interesting cables. Main issue is that I like to knit interesting patterns while DD2 does not like ‘fancy’ clothes for a special occasion. She wants everyday sort of clothes. Basically, she likes a lot of stockinet stitches. This is bad news for me. In order to make miles of stockinet stitches less boring, I added a variegated lace weight alpaca yarn from my LYS. It is called J. Knits Lace-A-Licious in pink color, Providence. It added a nice hand and color interest to the fabric without itchiness.

With DD2's desire in mind, I combined the two designs from the magazine: roomy lower bodice and fitted upper bodice of Design 14, XOXO cable pattern of Design 4, and ample sleeves but not too baggy. Even though DD2 resisted the idea of adding cables, she loved XOXO pattern. So, I happily knitted the orange XOXO cardigan.

She loves the result! Thanks goodness!!

Puppy Yarn’s Braid Scarf

2009-04-04T08:13:00.001-07:00

I saw this cute scarf made by a Japanese knitter, Ishi-san, who does such great jobs at anything she creates. I learned the pattern is from Puppy, a Japanese yarn company, and was made available free in 2003 to customers purchased their yarns. In other words, I don’t have the pattern.

Here is what I thought it might be done. It is okay, but something is not quite right. I used 5 mm crochet hook and Crystal Palace yarn Taos.

Later on, Yuri-san, a knitting friend in Japan, offered to send me yarns and the pattern. So, we exchanged knitting goods across the Pacific. She loves Norah Gaughan’s designs but Berroco booklets are not available in Japan and that’s what I sent to her. I now have the yarn and the pattern to crochet the braid scarf!

With the pattern and the same yarn used by Ishi-san, I tried the other day at Knitsmith. Initially, I was not quite happy with the results, but after playing with the location and the method of anchoring the chains at the bottom of the last double crochet, I think I got it. Now, all I have to do is to finish the project before next winter.

Green Cabled Yoke Pullover

2009-03-21T11:28:00.001-07:00

This one was one of those designs you fall in love at first sight: fabulous folds created by cabling, and yet, very simple in construction. It involves rectangle pieces for the body and yoke, and trapezoid sleeves. Looks more than that on the photo. I thought the yarn ought to be soft but not flimsy to show off the beautiful folds of the yoke. I knew I did not have such a perfect yarn in my stash and I was looking for one. At my LYS, I saw a swatch of a very fluffy looking yarn, CEY Lush. It was just perfect for the project I thought. It is a lover yarn with 50% angora and 50% wool.

Cables yoke has two rectangles, one narrower and longer than the other to be placed right above the bodice and the wider and shorter one to go on top of the narrower one. The original garment has a turtle neck above the yoke. It looks fine on the model, but I thought I would not like it with angora/wool yarn. It will choke me. After finishing the cabled pieces, I went ahead and completed the yoke to try on. The yoke looked a bit different depending on where you place the shoulder points along the cabled strip. I liked it when the crossing hit the shoulder points. For the neck edge, I picked up about 25% more stitches than the pattern, knit one round, purl one round, and cast off purl-wise very loosely.

For the body, I wanted the front edge to dip a bit more than the back and started by picking up stitches from the back yoke only, leaving front yoke and sleeve sections. Also, when I tried on the yoke, it felt too small to go around my body and arms comfortably. So, I decided to add underarm stitches as I knitted the back body. I could have made more difference in the front and back bodice lengths but that will be for the next version, if at all. It looks okay as it is for now. Now, the sleeves, or no sleeves? My knitting friends at Knitsmith were all saying I should just do without sleeves. I agree that it is very elegant that way. However, it is less likely to be worn without sleeves than with them, and I decided to knit sleeves after all.

Yellow Tweedy Cardigan

2009-03-10T17:04:00.000-07:00

I started to knit this cardigan on January 1, 2009. It is knitted with about 7.2 skeins of Peace Fleece in Khrushchev Corn Yellow. I love this shade of yellow.

I bought this yarn a few years back, way before Ravelry, when I visited yarn stores in Maine and New Hampshire with my knitting friends. Ordinarily, I would not consider yellow for myself, but this one was different. I am not a color theory expert and I have no idea what makes this yellow so different from the other ones. I fell in love and bought some skeins without having a particular project in mind.

Then, came Ravelry. After becoming a huge fan of Norah Gaughan, I would look for her designs and marvel them on Ravelry. Then I happened to see Norah's Tweedy Aran Cardigan from Interweave Knit magazine 2001/2002 issue in many different yarns and colors. Some of the finished projects were actually knitted with Peace Fleece. Then, I knew that I had to knit it with my yellow Peace Fleece. Given such a useful tool as Ravelry, I started to study the finished garments. I noticed that I liked versions which looked much longer than the others. I thought the longer versions show off waist shaping better. I also looked at button choices made by fellow knitters. Truly, Ravelry adds such an interesting dimension to knitting.

Now, about Norah's pattern. I love her fancy rib stitches: very stretchy and highly textured rib stitches. I almost thought of using them for entire sleeves but I decided that it might be too much for my poor wrists as this yellow Peace Fleece was quite hard on my hands in twisted stitches and cables. The photo below shows the texture of the fancy rib stitches best.

To make my life easier in executing fancy rib stitches, I took an extra step and rearranged stitches for easier knitting: Slip the first stitch to the right needle purl-wise and slip the second stitch knit-wise. Place these two stitches back to the left needle. Notice that the right leg of the second stitch is now easier to access from the back. Proceed by knitting into the second stitch’s right leg, and, without removing stitches from the left needle, knit the first stitch’s right leg. Remove both stitches from the left needle. Note to self: Fancy rib stitches eat up a lot of yarn. Estimate more yarn if I ever knit the same cardigan and use the stitch on sleeves.

Here are the changes I made: Lengthen the bodice by about 2" and to add more waist shaping (instead of 5 times, I did 7 times). Instead of making button holes involving just one yo, I chose to use a similar method I employed for Winter Wonderland Coat and did one-row button holes over three stitches. The modification was made to strengthen the right edge of the holes. Cast off the first stitch by slipping it over the last stitch on the right needle (it looks like k2tog). The next two stitches are cast off without using the working yarn by simply slip the stitch over the next stitch twice. Turn the work around and cast on four stitches using cable cast on method. Turn the work around and knit (or purl) the first stitch on the left needle with the last cast on stitch on the right needle. For this last step, the last cast on stitch must be transferred to the left needle first.

I found nice black horn buttons with notches etched on the surface, mimicking the fancy rib stitch pattern. Overall, this was a quite satisfying project.

I noticed that it goes very well with my Noro Sock Scarf recently finished.

Crochet Noro Sock Scarf

2009-03-08T10:27:00.000-07:00

I saw this beautifully crochet scarf in this blog sometime ago. The stitches are very interesting and beautifully executed. And the colors of the yarns ... . Absolutely gorgeous! Unfortunately, they are not available in the US as far as I know, and this is one of those cases where yarns mattered a lot. So, I just admired the work and never thought of making one myself. Then, I saw another scarf on Ravelry where Noro's sock yarns were used for the same pattern with gorgeous result. Here is her blog post on it. I happened to have one skein of Noro Kureyon Sock yarn in color 95, my favorite in Noro Kureyon colors.

This ball of sock yarn, I originally entertained the idea of knitting a skirt with it: the idea that its nylon content prevents bagging around the hip. I did not like the fabric as much and the yarn ball was just sitting at the bottom of WIP pile. At any rate, I jumped on the idea of the crochet scarf. I used the diagram from here and modified a little to make the fabric flatter: where there is one single crochet symbol, I added two more in the middle section and one more at the edge. I did five wheels per row. The wheels were crocheted using yarns alternately pulled from inside and outside of the same ball. It was quite a mess to pull yarn from the center as it had a tendency to twist, kink and knot. I ended up purchasing another ball to complete the project and it would have been much easier to use two balls alternately from the start. For the edging, I did a single row of single crochet. It is absolutely lovely!

Although it was not easy to crochet this scarf, I love the result so much and I am already working on the second one using two colors #95 and #188, just like Anne did.

On Winter Wonderland coat

2009-02-02T17:31:00.000-08:00

When the coat was finished, I brought it to my knitting group. On that particular day, one of the fellow knitters, Valerie, was there with one of her daughters. She was quietly knitting cute little Totoros with very colorful yarns and buttons. One week later, I was given the best compliment I could ever imagine. Valerie's daughter asked her if I really knitted the coat when they got home. Hearing that it was indeed what I knitted, she told her mother that she wanted to become as good at doing something as I knit, and later she decided that reading is what she wants to be very good at. I am so glad Valerie told me this story and truly stunned to learn that my knitting could do some good as it did to her daughter.

So, in the pursuit of the craft, here are some updates on the coat. The front bands are behaving better after application of Petersham ribbons, but they are still somewhat uneven. I now realize that this is due to stitches being pulled in by cable patterns. I could have applied wider petershams. I might try that next winter.

I failed to mention on the earlier post, but I do a little trick when I knit one-row button holes: I cast on one additional stitch which will then be knitted with the next stitch. I do this to prevent weak and stretched inner edge on the holes. Despite the trick, I found my buttonholes not quite sturdy at the outer edge. So, I decided to reinforce the buttonholes: using the same yarn, I applied buttonhole stitches all around. Another thing I forgot to mention: I use back buttons for support.

Winter Wonderland Coat

2009-01-01T13:11:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year from snow covered Boston!

Watching snow falling quietly, I was sewing up Winter Wonderland Coat yesterday, the very last project of 2008.

It turned out relatively light as it required about 3.5 skeins of Cascade Ecological Wool and the gauge was right on target with the specified needle size. Initially, I was not that sure of the yarn choice and I began knitting sleeves first. It turned out to be a good decision as I had to rip all the way to the beginning once. My tension was too loose and I was making mistakes all over the place. Overall, knitting was fun. I realized how I love cable and lace patterns. I also love the front dip and collar shaping. One thing I am not happy about is the flimsiness of the front bands. I am planning to attach petershams which I placed an order from The Sewing Place. Hopefully, it will do the trick.

Red Dress

2008-12-25T09:44:00.001-08:00

For my DD2, I knitted a dress in 2002. She was 5 years old. The pattern is Child’s Sand Dollar by Jade Starmore with some modifications, and I knitted with Baby Ull by Dale of Norway. She wore it every winter all these years since then until this winter. She pulled it out of her winter clothes and said that sleeves were too tight at the cuffs. After all, she’s been growing and sleeves were too short and cuffs were landing on her mid arms. What did I do? Undid the cuffs and knitted the sleeves longer. She wanted them to be very long. So, here she is with her ‘new’ tunic.

The photo below shows the difference in sleeve lengths.

Iced Tea

2008-12-07T12:10:00.000-08:00

Not sure what I was thinking to commit to knitting multiple stockinet stitch projects this year, but that’s what happened. Thanks to boring and mindless stockinet stitch, however, I was able to knit and watch TV for many nights leading up to the election. Not only that, I was very productive. I finished six iced tea pullovers by the time Obama became the 44th President. The first one was knitted with GGH Scarlett, 100% cotton. Next four were knitted with Sublime Soya Cotton DK and the last one with Berroco Bonsai. The version with GGH Scarlett ended up with a twisted bodice. Side seams would not fall straight from the armholes, and run slightly towards left, about 2 inches. Not too bad, but still bothersome. While knitting, I did not notice much of kinks or excess twist, but clearly, the yarn was not well balanced. I had no problems with Soya Cotton and Bonsai.

Here are the first 5 iced tea pullovers. The top left is knit with GGH Scarlett, and the rests are with Sublime yarns.

The one below is with Bonsai yarn.

Three of the Sublime versions were sent out to Spain the other day, and Ana took a photograph of herself for my blog in her ginseng iced tea. Thanks, Ana! I am glad to see it fits you.

The bonsai version was modified a little to make the front dip a bit deeper.

I've never knitted one pattern this many times!

Sunny Vests

2008-10-12T05:44:00.000-07:00

Something very unusual happened during the summer. DH picked up one of my knitting booklets, Sublime #610, and actually said he liked Varsity Stripe Vest. This is only the second time in my knitting life that he actually liked something I could knit for him. I had to act quickly before he changed his mind. I began knitting before we left for our summer vacation. I was knitting at the beach of Denia, Spain. That was a gorgeous place we stayed. I can visit the place again and again. My SIL also picked up her forgotten needles and the two of us were knitting. I hope she continues to knit.

He is wearing the second vest actually. What happened is that he wanted it not too loose and baggy and I did not use my best judgment. The first one I was knitting at the beach turned out too small for him and became mine. Again, I had to knit two to make the intended garment. I used Sublime Soya Cotton DK. It is much softer than 100% cotton yarns and I love it.

Vicki, el chaleco que llevo puesto es el que estaba haciendo en Denia, para mi querido esposo. Sin embargo, se quedo corto y he tenido que hacer otro para el, asi que el primero me lo quedo yo.

Hellenne's hand painted silk scarf

2008-08-17T05:22:00.000-07:00

These are silk scarves Hellenne painted, or should I say paintings on silk? Hellenne’s colors are just breathtaking and silk chiffon fabrics are fabulous. I’ve been admiring her work for quite some time since I ‘met’ her on a sewing forum. Some of them will travel with me to Spain in a few days, and one of them will be mailed to Japan with Terra Cotta Manon in fall.

She also painted these below. Don’t you think they look as though painted for my Lucy?

Here is my Gingko scarf with Green Manon.

Lucy in Venezia

2008-07-29T18:33:00.000-07:00

Once I won eight balls of ribbon yarn in wonderful light mint green shade on Ebay. It is a bulky ribbon yarn called Filati Bertagna Venezia and has about 99 yards per ball. Eight of them did not seem enough and I went back to Ebay, but I could never win them again. It was about five years ago and they cost me less than $15!

What could I knit with 800 yards of yarn? I had no idea initially and the yarn sat there for a few years. Then Rowan 37 came out and I saw Lucy. It is a cardigan with overlapped front bodice pieces which are buttoned up at the top section only. It has a wide lace border on the body and the sleeves are entirely knit in lace pattern: a very cute cardigan suitable for cold office in summer. Although it is not knitted with a thin ribbon yarn, it requires a bulky weight yarn and the quantity was sufficient. I was going to knit it up right away. Instead, it sat a few more years until now.

As always, I put my fall/winter projects away in late spring. I pulled out my summer projects out of their hiding place and saw the ribbon yarn, its color being still wonderfully fresh and beautiful to my eyes, and I remembered what I was going to knit with it. After completing last year’s UFOs, I immediately cast on Lucy, thinking I have enough yarn and the weight is perfect. Well, it was almost perfect, but with a few big surprises. The lace pattern gauge was about the same, but the stockinet stitch required so much lower stitch and row counts. This is good news for someone who once worried about not having enough yarn. Revised the pattern according to my gauge and started knitting the back. I used up almost 3 balls, three out of eight. I had two front pieces and two long sleeves to knit with the remaining five balls!

What I did next was to cut where ever it was possible. Front pieces cannot be overlapped so much, just enough to button them up. Also, I can lower the front neck line. Sleeves could get shorter. With all these cut backs, I made it. It turned out a bit different from the Rowan version, but it is cute enough to me. I love the red button against this pale mint color. I had this button for a while, but again, I had only one of them. It was shaky in the middle of the process, but it turned out all so nicely in the end.

Nearly never finished

2008-07-19T05:54:00.001-07:00

I actually finished this tank top last weekend, but I could have had it totally frogged. Reason? See the little lump next to a shoulder strap? That's how much leftover yarn I have, maybe four or five yards. I got so nervous about the yarn amount that I knitted like a crazy person with needles towards the end. Somehow my intuition was working ever so perfectly unbeknownst to me, and my decision to make the top section shorter did save the project: I skipped six rows from the front and 8 from the back.

Where is my time?

2008-07-08T19:45:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe it is been a month since I posted on Green Manon! Where did my time go? June seems to go by so quickly since DDs started to go to their elementary school. Not that I did not have time to knit, but I certainly did not have time to relax and think. I knit here and there throughout the day, and that adds up especially with a small summer garment.

This is a summer cardigan I began knitting last summer. It was almost forgotten in one of my many knitting bags. Since I had stopped knitting in the middle of a front bodice and did not make any notes on where it was that I stopped, I had to figure that out first. This should teach me a lesson. Once I managed to decipher my handwritten notes, it was rather smooth sailing. The only trouble is the yarn. It is a cotton and nylon blend from Elann.com. I love the color, but I am not that crazy about the feel of the fabric. It is rather rough to touch. What’s worse is that it is really hard to ‘read’ stitches. The pattern on the other hand is just gorgeous. It is from Bergère de France no. 123. I thought that the booklet was out of print, but I recently learned from Ravelry that it can be ordered from their website with reference number 19409 under Commande tab. In any case, I just adore little eyelet rows between different lace patterns and along the front and neck edges. They are quite functional as well as decorative. The pattern has six rows total with all the rows knitted in garter stitches. The eyelet stitches are knitted on the fourth row, facing the wrong side of the fabric, with yarn over and k2tog repeated. Definitely nice little detail to be used again and again.

Green Manon

2008-06-08T15:44:00.001-07:00

After a visit to my LYS, I found two sets of suitable buttons for Green Manon. Not being sure which pair to use, it was decided that I ought to use them all. A chopstick on a chopstick rest kind of look, but I love it.

Despite Manon designed by Norah Gaughan being beautiful and interesting to knit, I had reservation on how it would look on me and I decided to change the upper body section a bit. The focal point of the design is in the peplum and its geometric design, and they are kept as they are. Modifications are made on the rest of the design to make the ribbed band at waist level and hence make the upper body longer. Some details on the modification are the following: skip two rows of ribbing every 8 rows on panel sections, which meant 48 rows removed from the ribbed band. It sounds a lot smaller, actually too small. However, remember that the ribbed stitches tend to turn out looser than the stockinet stitches. It was the right amount being removed for me. Next, re-calculate the number of stitches picked up for the upper body, lengthen the upper body section below underarm to about 5.5 inches, and add 4 stitches along the side seams on upper body section to compensate for the narrowed ribbed band. More re-calculation required to match the front and back shoulder seams. Peace fleece I used is not a smooth yarn and it feels rather scratchy against the skin. This garment will be worn over a top or a blouse and I made sure that it has enough ease built in it. If it were knitted with soft and smooth yarn, it could be very nice with no or scant ease, like the version I knitted for my sister. When the weather gets a bit cooler, more photos will be added.

Addendum: Finally the weather and my schedule cooperated. With my DD1's help, I have some photos. Me wearing Green Manon and a back view. I tried on the terra cotta version for my sister. Here and here. Terra cotta Manon is very snag and its shoulder width is too small for me. Nevertheless, I think it can be a nice warm weather cardigan with cotton or silk yarns.

Oxymoron

2008-05-30T20:11:00.000-07:00

I saw this beautiful design by Joëlle Meier Rioux in a Classic Elite booklet and said ‘Aha!’ What a combination, bulky and lacy, also delicate. I had to knit this oxymoron garment. Although the original is knitted with a DK weight cotton blend yarn, doubled, I had Vittadini Samantha in my stash. A bulky cotton yarn, just right for this design.

It took me less than a week to complete and the result is great. I've been wondering what I could knit with this bulky Samantha for a few years. Then, one day, the right design comes right at you. I am so glad to have my 'healthy' yarn stash. Here is the lovely lace pattern at the center front.

Norah Gaughan designs

2008-05-18T19:05:00.000-07:00

I used to knit Fair Isle garments mainly. These days, I am all for cables and geometric designs. As soon as I learned that Norah Gaughan published new booklet series last fall, I had to get a copy. The first volume has many designs I just adore. I ended up knitting a shrug from her second volume first. Although it is designed for a summer yarn, I thought it might be nice with winter yarns. I had Noro Silk Garden Lite in blue/yellow color which I used for a hat. I wanted the shrug to be extra cozy and added Kidsilk Haze in Trance, a slightly darker blue. I just love the way colors in Noro yarn get blended with each other by the silk-mohair’s blue wash.

I used 4.5 mm needles and cast on 171 stitches as specified for the smaller size and knit the Top piece. For the bottom lace section, 4.5 mm needles produced a fabric which was stiff compared to the top section. So, I re-started with 5.5 mm needles and cast on 49 stitches instead of 64. The gauge for the lace pattern was 5 rows per inch. I knitted 290 rows for the bottom section. It is so lovely that I’ve been wearing it every night.

Next, a fellow knitsmith, Nancy, was knitting Manon from Norah Gaughan’s book No. 1, and I decided I want to knit one for my sister. I happened to have 12 balls of Peruvian Highland Wool in terra cotta, the color she loves. Now, my yarn is worsted weight while the pattern calls for Aran weight. This difference did not deter me, but I had to keep in mind that my sister is at least one inch taller and quite skinnier than I am. Especially, her shoulder width is much narrower. There is no way of fitting the garment while I knit as she lives in Azumino, Japan. If the garment fit me too tight, it would fit her just right.

Instead of planning changes like I did for Elizabeth I, I decided to plunge fearlessly this time. As I expected, things went wrong. I began knitting the peplum for size 34” with 4.5 mm needles. The finished peplum section was much larger than I intended. Also, I noticed that I prefer to have the ribbing section a bit narrower and sitting at waist level. Switching to 4 mm needles, I started from scratch and decided to skip two rows of ribbing over every 8 rows of cable pattern. It turned out almost exactly how I wanted it to be.

The rest of the bodice went smoothly and the only change I made was to lengthen the underarm side seams to 5 ½”. My sister does not wear trendy clothes. Those short sleeves won’t be easy for her to deal with. I knit slim and long sleeves with cuffs which are not sewn at sides. For the closures, I crocheted button loops with chain stitches. Extra buttons were attached at the top of the cuffs.

The finished cardigan fits me very snugly, too snug actually. My DD1 looks quite good in it, too. As I truly love the design, I started knitting one for myself in green.

Looks like it’s going to be much larger than my sister's. Thanks goodness!

Tinkering Elizabeth I Pullover

2008-05-04T10:40:00.000-07:00

Some years ago, I did yarn swap with an accomplished knitter in Switzerland and acquired beautiful Camel Dunedin yarns. I knitted Elizabeth of York with some of them. I loved the way Dunedin shows off stitch pattern. If I were to classify this yarn, I would place it between fingering and sports weight, or almost sports weight but not quite as thick. Its texture is spongy and similar to Gems Merino. I would probably use it as a substitute for Dunedin.

With the remaining Dunedin, I decided to knit Elizabeth I Pullover, which I knew required some tinkering. I heard it is too large overall and the neck opening is too wide, in particular. I decided to make this pullover more fitted with zero or very scant ease all around. For that, 5 stitches were taken out at each side of the bodice. At the same time, I did not want to modify the beautiful center V-shaped design. In order to maintain the design, I decreased the number of stitches reduced along the raglan shaping. Note that these changes made on bodice pieces do not change the number of stitches along the top. So far so good. Next task was to make sleeves narrower. I decided that the raglan shaping for the sleeves do not need to match that of the bodice, and I took out 8 stitches at the center of each sleeves. I felt that reducing the neckband length by total of 16 stitches might not be sufficient and added a dart at the top of sleeves, reducing further 12 stitches for each sleeve, with the total of 40 stitches removed from the neckband. The photo below shows the center dart on the sleeve.

Note to self: I may have been better off matching the raglan shaping of the sleeves to that of the bodice, and increasing the center dart depth so that 16 stitches were removed at the center top, with 30 stitches in total decreased along the neckband.

This pullover is very elegant and relatively quick to knit. I would knit it again happily.

La Alhambra Pullover

2008-03-14T19:00:00.000-07:00

This pullover reminds me of La Alhambra with pillars and ceilings adorned heavily with arabesque paneling. We visited Granada, Spain, two years ago and I finally got to visit La Alhambra. What a feast for senses! It is a spectacular place visually, of course, but the sounds of water running through the palace and the aroma of flowers and trees. I would love to visit again and again. Perhaps, I should have chosen ivory yarns for the pullover.

The pattern is from Couture Knit no. 8 by Shida Hitomi shown above, which I got last summer in Japan. I saw this pullover first time in Ms. Shida's book of
250 knitting patterns a few years ago and I’ve been longing to knit it ever since. Mine is knitted with Rowan Pure Wool DK in Dahlia, which of course is not the original yarn.

As you can see, I changed the collar so that the cable patterns continue from the body, and that it stays off of my neck. I just ignored the neck shaping, kept knitting with cable patterns slightly modified, and cast off when the length I wanted was achieved.

Trial and Error

2008-03-01T13:00:00.000-08:00

This seems to be the way I accomplish a good result.

Addendum: I just learned that the pattern is available in German from here for free. Let me know if you want my English translation. I don't think it is accurate, but it worked okay with me.

It was Aran Pullover for me

2008-02-22T20:41:00.000-08:00

I saw Katrin's crossed front pullover last year. I love the color, the design, and the whole thing. I had to knit one myself. She kindly purchased a copy of the magazine for me. With Babel Fish as my guide, I tackled this German pattern. As I was not sure if I can wear a green funky top, I started knitting one in my usual color. Things were going rather well for a while and I finished it as well.

This short aran pullover with crossed front bands was knitted with Knit Picks' Andean Silk, and it was meant for me. However, it became quite obvious it was going to be too small for me. I could have ripped the whole thing and re-knit it for a larger size, but I opted to finish as was. I have two DDs and figured one of them can wear it now or later. So, here it is on my DD1. She looks pretty good in it.

I really liked knitting with Andean Silk. It is not rough against the skin and DDs agreed that they have no trouble wearing on their bare skin. Something I need to remember for future projects.

Now that I know how bands and the side panels fit, I began knitting for mine. I ordered a heavier yarn. This time, I am using WEBS’ Sugarloaf. I love this yarn! Springy and spongy texture and feel very soft. Another yarns kids would not mind. Being the second version, I did change the pattern here and there. Instead of casting off reverse stockinet stitches along the back neckline, I added 1 by 1 ribbing before casting off.

Two more sleeves to go!

Something New

2008-02-20T20:50:00.000-08:00

To me, that is. Through a Japanese blogger, I learned of an exhibit by Britt-Marie Christoffersson held in Tokyo. Here are some more photos posted by another blogger. Looks so much fun to knit those fabrics. I am very envious of those who took classes.

ps. From the second link above, I learned that the instruction material used in the class is available. It is rather expensive, though.

Cardigan for Father

2008-02-10T11:05:00.000-08:00

I had this idea of knitting a cardigan for my father for his 50th anniversary when I was knitting Mother’s shawl and saw this Rowan book for men. Martin Storey’s Reverse Stripe Sweater got my attention. I love stripes but never tried reverse stripes. Using Rowan Felted Tweed in this pattern makes even more interesting fabric. The only problem is Father hates pullovers as they mess up his hair, and he does not wear brown colors. I bought Midnight and several other colors of FT and started knitting samples for him to choose from. Father likes navy blue as I remembered. Together with Midnight, I decided on Treacle as the secondary main color. For the accent I chose dark red, mustard, and orange and let him select one. The color sequence was adjusted slightly so that the accent color is between dark brown Treacle, instead of Midnight. The sample I made is shown below in the order from the left. In case he misunderstand that the purl side is the wrong side, I sewed the samples on a piece of paper, and mailed them off to Japan.

According to my sister who watched my father made the decision, the orange one was out immediately. He was unsure between the remaining two, but the notion that ‘red’ is for young people got the better of him and he decided on mustard yellow. Personally, I would have enjoyed knitting orange version best.

Knitting this cardigan went rather smoothly. First the back and then I moved onto sleeves. Once they were finished, I assembled pieces and tried it on my DH to determine the location of the V-neck. Remembering that Father has a bit of belly, I added two to three inches extra to the front.

Here is DH posing with Father’s cardigan.

One detail shot of front bands.

I use back buttons on knitted cardigans in order to prevent over stretching of the fabric under buttons. Also, note the locations of buttons relative to holes. Do you notice that they are not right in the middle of the hole? They are almost at the top of the holes. When placed in the middle, the left front tends to hang lower than the right as the left front slides down until it is supported by buttons. In a sewing book, you learn how buttons and button holes are positioned relative to each other, and that’s how I know.

Herringbone Hat à la May

2008-01-19T22:17:00.000-08:00

This pattern is written for the finished crown circumference of 24” (for a person with head circumference of 23”) only. For a smaller size, adjustments are required. When you find errors, please let me know.

What you need:
- Classic Elite Beatrice, 4 balls (actually 3 balls and a few more yards). Yarn spec of Beatrice is 63 yards/ 50 gm ball, gauge 4 stitches = 1" on #10 1/2 needles, and heavy worsted weight. For a smaller size, 3 balls are enough.
- Knitting needles in size 5.5mm.
- Tapestry needle for seaming.

Herringbone pattern:
- Row 1 (WS): Repeat [purl 2 stitches together, before taking stitches off of the left needle, purl the first stitch again] until one stitch left on the left needle, purl 1.
- Row 2 (RS): Repeat [slip 1 stitch knit-wise, knit 1, pick up the slipped stitch with the left needle and knit it] until one stitch left on the left needle, knit 1.

Gauge: In herringbone pattern, 24 stitches by 20 rows for a 4” square.

For finished crown circumference of 24” (for a person with head circumference of 23”)
Side crown: Lace cast on 145 stitches. Repeat row 1 and row 2 9 times, with the total of 18 rows.

Top of the crown:
Row 19 (WS) - Repeat [pattern 6 stitches, p2tog twice] until 5 stitches remain, pattern 4 stitch, p1. 117 stitches remain. Notice, p2tog must be repeated in a row so as not to disturb the herringbone pattern.
Row 20 and all the even numbered rows for the top of the crown - knit as Row 2.
Row 21 - Repeat [pattern 14 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 16 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 105 stitches remain.
Row 23 - Repeat [pattern 12 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 14 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 93 stitches remain.
Row 25 - Repeat [pattern 10 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 12 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 81 stitches remain.
Row 27 - Repeat [pattern 8 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 10 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 69 stitches remain.
Row 29 - Repeat [pattern 6 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 8 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 57 stitches remain.
Row 31 - Repeat [pattern 4 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 6 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 45 stitches remain.
Row 33 - Repeat [pattern 2 stitches, p2tog twice, pattern 4 stitches, p2tog twice] three times, pattern 2 stitches, p1. 33 stitches remain.
Row 34 - K2tog until the last stitch, k1. 17 stitches remain.
Cut the yarn, leaving about 20” hanging for seaming.
Pull the yarn through the remaining 17 stitches and tighten. At this point, you can start seaming and check the size, but do not cut the remaining yarn. Before start knitting the brim, you will need to undo seaming for about 1 to 2 inches so that the brim can be knitted flat. When seaming, pick up the vertexes of herringbone pattern, abutting the sides together.

Brim:
Pick up 145 stitches from the bottom of the crown with right side facing.
Knit as Row 1 (WS) - Purl patterned stitches.
Row 2 (RS) - Repeat [pattern 20 stitches as Row 2 of the crown, yo] 7 times, pattern 5 stitches (152 stitches)
Row 3 (WS) and all the WS rows - Repeat [purl patterned stitches to yo, add one stitch by picking up a bar of the previous row] until the last yo, add one stitch by picking up a bar of the previous row, purl patterned stitches to the end. Notice that two stitches are added at yo in order to maintain the herringbone pattern. 159 stitches on the needle.
Row 4 - Purl pattern 10 stitches, yo, repeat [pattern 22 stitches, yo] 6 times, pattern 17 stitches (166 stitches)
Row 5 - Repeat Row 3 (173 stitches)
Row 6 - Repeat [purl pattern 20 stitches, yo] 8 times, pattern 13 stitches. (181 stitches)
Row 7 - Repeat Row 3 (189 stitches)
Cast off - Facing RS, ssk, repeat [ssk, cast off] until one stitch remain, cast off the last stitch together with the stitch on the right needle.

Seam the hat.

Circular Shawl by Shida Hitomi

2008-01-10T19:20:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine has asked me to translate texts on a pattern by Shida Hitomi. It is an almost circular shawl from Ms. Shida's recent book "Couture Knits vol. 12".

Yarn spec (It is available on page 34 of the book. It is the fifth one from the top): Extra fine merino 50%, nylon 50%, about 200 m per 40 g ball, recommended needle size 5 to 6 (in Japanese sizing), gauge is 22-24 stitches by 33-35 rows.

Yarn requirement: 4 balls (about 800 m)

Needles: Japanese size 7 knitting needles and size 4/0 crochet hook.

Finished diameter: 53.5 cm

Knitting instructions:
- Make a circle and pick up 15 stitches by repeating knit 1, yarn over.
- Follow the chart on page 60 and knit 28 rows. There will be 74 stitches on the needles. Note that the blank squares indicate no stitches (in other instructions, they are for purl stitches).
- Next, follow the bottom chart on page 61 and knit 42 rows. On Row 1, the number of stitches are increased to 170, and on Row 42, 195 stitches should be on the needles.
- Follow the middle chart for 16 rows. There are no increases.
- Follow the top chart for 62 rows. On Row 1, the number of stitches are increased to 387, and on Row 62, 531 stitches should be on the needles.
- Using crochet hook, single crochet over the first 6 stitches, and repeat [6 chain stitches, single crochet over the next 5 stitches] all around the shawl. Over the straight edges, pick up yarns one stitch inside of the edge and repeat the pattern for 24.5 times. For the second row, single crochet all the way.

Little Things

2008-01-03T19:07:00.000-08:00

Over the holiday we made a few little things, I mean my DD1 and I. She whipped up two knitted ornament sweaters from Berroco’s Minutia pattern, and gave them out to her friend and a friend of DD2. She was so fast in wrapping them up that I had time to take photos of one of them only. The other one was in green and also had some cables in the front. This was her first cable experience and she loved it. She did a great job!

I did this knitted bunny from Heart String Fiber Arts website for my DD2 who loves bunnies. She's been asking for a stuffed bunny for quite some time and I had some leftover angora yarn in pale pink. Just a perfect last minute gift for her. The yarn is 100% angora, btw.

Lastly, a cloth doll I made for DD2’s birthday several weeks ago. It is from one of the craft books we bought in Japan. We walked into a craft chain store called Hobbyra-Hobbyre in Nagoya and saw Nina dolls. Of course, DDs fell in love and we bought the book and a few fabrics, including Liberty of London prints. Can you see what Nina is knitting?

Hat Crazy

2008-01-02T18:53:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year to you all!

I've been knitting hats since my last major project was completed. Two scrappy hats were the first ones, followed by herringbone cloche/hat, cabled hats, and just completed berets. I have not established a habit of blogging regularly and just kept on knitting. So, this post will be rather long, I am afraid.

The herringbone cloche in Vogue Knitting Caps and Hats Two is something I wanted to knit for a few years. Its shape and stitch pattern appealed to me. It uses this neat stitch which is also used in My So-called Scarf and I knitted it last January. I thought it would be nice to have a matching hat. The only issue was that the pattern is written for size 20" only while my head is 23" plus. Besides, I hate snug hats. Also, the original pattern calls for Koigu Kersti in DK weight while I wanted to use Manos del Uruguay which is heavy worsted weight.

I started a test version with leftover Classic Elite Beatrice which happens to be heavy worsted weight. I followed the pattern with some gauge adjustments using 5.5 mm needles and aimed for 24" circumference. I did three sections for the crown as directed. Seaming these sections required thinking however. In the photo of the book, you see a vertical line along the seam which definitely does not belong to the herringbone pattern. As you can see below, in my cloche, it is less visible. It was achieved by just picking up the vertexes.

The Beatrice yarn was so bouncy and I loved the firmness of the finished hat. I wore it just about everyday, until I lost it on a cab. How stupid could I be? I just left it on the seat. I was so sad and was lamenting about it for a few days, wondering how I could recover from the loss. Well, I just bought more of the same yarn in different colors.

In the meantime, I’ve knitted another herringbone hat with Manos. This time, I knitted the crown as one flat piece. I love this version much better than the first. So, when Beatrice yarns arrive, I will be knitting the second version.

By the way, I found out that I don’t like the matching hat and scarf set, at least not with multi colored Manos.

Next hats are designed by a fellow Knitsmith, Thea. The pattern is available for free here.

When I saw her first baby version, I fell in love with the style. In a short while, she did adult versions, Woven and Cabled! I thought the patterns could work for my head and face shape which require a brim. I made it a bit larger than Thea’s original pattern and it really turned out nice, so nice that my DD1 decided it has to be hers. To be honest, she looks better in it than I. Big sister’s new hat leads to her little sister’s new hat usually. So, here they are in new hats. BTW, I used gold Roman coin buttons from my button collection.

The last project of 2007 was Rowan free pattern, Gemma Beret, for DDs. Have you felt Brushed Suri from Blue Sky Alpaca? If you have not, go to your LYS and touch it. It is heavenly, just as soft as clouds look in autumn sky. It looks like a regular mohair yarn which might feel scratchy to some people. The look is really deceiving. This is probably the softest yarn I’ve ever felt. I needed less than one skein for the beret which was knitted with the specified needles but with fewer numbers of stitches cast on. My DDs are very pleased with it.

The Legends of the Shetland Seas Shawl

2007-12-11T19:11:00.000-08:00

As you can see, Mother’s shawl is finally blocked and finished. This was my first time blocking any knitted items with wires. The method worked so beautifully. All the irregularities are gone and the shawl looks truly magnificent. The only difficulty was to find a large enough space to spread this thing out. It measures 72” long and 25” wide even though the pattern says the width is 18”. No wonder I used up more yarn than expected. No matter. Mother will be happy with more fuzzy warmth around her.

Here is the end panel.

And the center panel.

I had to use four large bath towels underneath the shawl when blocking. Even then, my comforter was kind of damp when all was finished. My DH says I should have used a plastic sheet under the towels. Looks like I need to go to a garden center when I knit this beauty next time.

Next is Father’s cardigan. Their gold anniversary is in March and I should have enough time for a cardigan.

Scrappy Hats and Cowl

2007-12-10T07:25:00.001-08:00

I’ve been knitting this pattern called Scrappy Hat by Folknits multiple times this year. The pattern was available on their website for free early this year, but I am unable to find it now. So far, I’ve knitted three of them. First one was knitted with Noro Silk Garden 245, 2 balls, with 4.5mm needles. I cast on 65 stitches for my large head, about 23". I used up the two balls completely and it looked just fine as a hat initially. However, Silk Garden became very soft rather quickly and the hat became too large. It is now turned into a wonderful cowl.

Second one was done with Noro Silk Garden Lite 2027, 2 and 1/4 balls, with 4 mm needles. I saw a version knitted by a Knitsmith, Nancy, and I fell in love. The colors in 2027 are just gorgeous and I had to do one myself. I cast on 90 stitches and did 174 rows, or 29 repeats of 6 pattern rows. When turned up once, it is a rather slouchy hat, while turned up twice, it is a regular hat as photographed below. I am afraid this one may become slouchy no matter what. BTW, the color 2027 is discontinued now and I am so glad that I picked up some more balls for a matching scarf or another hat. In order to prevent stretching out, I’m thinking of knitting it with a strand of firm yarn, such as Kidsilk Haze.

The third one is knitted with Noro Kureyon 148, again discontinued, 2.5 balls. I used 4.5 mm needles and cast on 70 stitches. This is one of the Kureyon colors I just adore. It has all my favorite shades, chocolate, raspberry, toffee, etc. As Kureyon is more stable and bouncier than Silk Garden, I hope it will keep the original dimension. I did 27 repeats of 6 pattern rows, and it is turned up once only.

Addendum: A fellow Knitsmith member, Amber, pointed me to Scrappy hat pattern. Thank you, Amber!

Rowan 42 Iceland

2007-11-24T20:30:00.001-08:00

The Shetland shawl for my mother was finished sometime ago, but still waiting to be blocked. I just need a few hours to myself in the bedroom to complete the task, but I have not gotten time to do that yet. Soon, I hope. In the mean time, I cast on for a pullover from Rowan 42, Iceland. It has very wide three-quarter length sleeves. It knit up very fast with bulky yarns and 7mm needles.

Halfway through the project, I almost ripped the whole thing. It did not look large enough to me. When measured flat, the top piece had the right dimension. Yet, it looked so small. There was no way it would stretch down to below waist, I thought. My DH suggested that I finish it as it was, and if it turns out to be too small, knit another one. Well, it was the right advice and I am so glad to have listened to him. The knitted fabric turned out to be so elastic that it did reach the length I wanted.

So, here I am very pleased with the finished garment. I used only 7 balls of the yarn.

New book by Shimada Toshiyuki

2007-11-15T21:19:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I received two knitting books by Mr. Shimada, one of which was recently published and contains 14 garments previously introduced in Keito Dama without patterns, plus 10 new designs. (Link to the new book)

Here is one of the garments I was hoping to get patterns for some day since 2004. I happened to have a right yarn for this project, too.

Also, the recent issue of Keito Dama has Shida Hitomi listed in the contents page three times! It's been ordered but I won't receive it until December. Boo Hoo! (See the contents in Japanese)

Added: In case you want to order the book from YesAsia, here is the link!

Link to Errata: I just learned that there are errors in Mr. Shimada's new book, and they are corrected here. BTW, the book is indicated to have sold out on Nihon Vogue web page. Not to worry, though, as they are re-printing. Also, follow this link to find out if other publications by Nihon Vogue have errors.

A little project for distraction

2007-11-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

I am getting a little tired of knitting the border for the LSS shawl. It is beautiful and I am so close to the end, but I am not that eager to finish. It is time to get something new going.

I’ve had this one skein of Louet Gems Merino Pearl, fingering weight, for many months. It was originally purchased to test its appropriateness for Aberlady. The yarn failed the test: it was too strongly plied and the fabric was not as soft as I thought it should be for the design. So, it stayed in my yarn basket untouched. I loved the color of the yarn too much to just put it away. It is bright pink/fuchsia. I’ve been wondering what I could possibly make with one skein of this pink yarn? Then, I saw a blog post by Ishi-san. Aha! That’s what I thought. And, here it is, my Wabenschal scarf. I’ve been wishing to have a skinny scarf in solid color for some time, and this was just the perfect thing.

I made it narrower than the original pattern to achieve enough length. It is not cumbersome as other scarves I own, yet kept me warm all day today. I used to love thick and bulky scarves, but looks like I will be knitting skinnier ones this winter.

Shawl, Twin Set, and Something New

2007-10-29T18:46:00.000-07:00

The main panel of the shawl is done and I am working on the edging. One of my knitting friends at the Knitsmith Claire gave me the red crochet ball bag shown above. It is just the perfect thing for my lace yarn. Thanks Claire!

I could not resist pinning the lace fabric on my ironing board.

I've finished DD2's tank top to match with her cardigan sometime ago. Here is how they are put together.

The tank top is based on a Katia pattern from last summer, slightly modified.

Here is the beginning of my new project. I bought this gorgeous yarn, Schachenmayr Diva in grey, from my LYS on sale sometime ago. It is a blend of wool and polyamide and I have 7 balls.

I have been swatching this ribbon yarn quite some time, started with simple stockinet stitches which I thought was boring, and moved onto various lace stitches, most of which were way too elaborate. In the end, I settled for garter stitches. But, I need some fun stitches, like yarn over, ssk or k2tog. So, what you see in the top section of the swatch is what I will be using. It was adopted from my old project and I changed it slightly. We shall see how it turns out.

New Pattern Magic

2007-10-27T14:59:00.000-07:00

The second volume of Pattern Magic by Ms. Tomoko Nakamichi will be out on November 11th.

Update: Yes Asia has the book listed here for non-US order and here for US order.

What I look forward to when I visit Japan

2007-10-15T18:30:00.000-07:00

No knitting or sewing contents today. Just about foods!!

There are many good and great Japanese restaurants in the U.S., but nothing compares to those you grew up with. I love to visit Nawate Douri in Matsumoto. It is a small section along Metoba river which is lined with small shops. I always visit there at least a couple of times when I visit my parents. Just stroll along the river with hand-made osenbei and taiyaki. Very simple and pleasant moment I always look forward to. For more excitement, my sister and her husband always have some new restaurants for us to try. This summer we went to Ayu Tei restaurant. My brother-in-law is a friend of the chef and they treated us with such abundant delicacies. We could hardly finish all the dishes served. I actually don’t remember how many courses there were. What impressed me most was a sashimi salad. I would go there anytime. We had pictures taken with the chef, Uchiyama-san, and his assistant, miss pirate.

We did not have a chance this time, but we love to visit Pamplona, yes, Spanish restaurant in Matsumoto area. They have paella, of course, but also black rice, which is cooked with squid ink. Absolutely delicious. Apparently, there is a meat shop in Japan producing sobrasada for some years now, not to mention jamon and chorizo, and they had them at the restaurant. Being from Spain, my DH tried the sobrasada. He said it was quite good.

Last but not least, we always visit Abura-Ya Chinese restaurant. It is a small shop but always busy. My DDs talk about it all the time, dreaming of going back there.

I am sure there are many more places I should be visiting. For one, I need to go to Sakura-ya where they serve only eels, that’s it.

Well, I am writing this entry at night and I’d better stop. Or else, I will need to snack on something.

Lace Shawl by Hazel Carter

2007-09-23T20:09:00.000-07:00

During my vacation in Japan, I knitted Hazel Carter's Legends of the Shetland Seas shawl with Lisa Souza hand dyed lace yarn in Sea Foam. Both the pattern and the yarn are just lovely. Actually, I saw the same shawl knit by my longtime internet knitting friend Laura one day this summer and I just fell in love with it. She brought with her many gorgeous afghans and lace shawls, but this Shetland shawl really caught my eyes. Her version was in darker color, called Wild Things, evoking dark stormy seas in northern Europe. I was going to knit it in the same color for myself initially. Then, I realized that my parents will be celebrating their gold anniversary soon. I thought the light sea foam color would be lovely on my mother whose hair is white. I still have a long way to go before I can start the edging as I am still on the center section.

Coming back home, I had to quickly seam up pieces to finish Belén’s cardigan. The pattern is from Phildar Enfants Printemps Été 2007 and the yarns used are Katia’s Sonrisa. We love narrow bands on the sleeves and cute flower buttons.

The back view.

And, Phildar version

More Japanese Books

2007-09-21T18:36:00.000-07:00

We were on vacation in Japan for a few weeks and visited Nagoya and Matsumoto. Besides seeing my relatives, what I love to do over there is to go to markets and eat those morsels which are not readily available in the U.S. and to purchase craft books.

Here is a partial list of what I brought back: Four knitting books including Keito Dama Fall 2007, and Couture Knits no. 12 by Shida Hitomi. I also picked up Shida Hitomi's Couture Knits no. 8 and a back issue of SeKaINo Amimono from 2000, both of which are out of print now. I am quite excited about Ms. Shida's no. 8. There is one pullover in it with gorgeous cable design I must knit. I have yarns for it waiting for cooler days. Most of the designs from her no. 12 are knitted with fabulous and complex pattern stitches and simple garment designs, but there are a few which show new directions. It seems that my list of knitting projects gets longer every season.

I bought some sewing patterns books, including a book on skirts by Yoshiko Tsukii, on dresses and blouses by the same author, a fascinating book by Natsuno Hiraiwa, and Dress Up - Dress Down Simple Chic by Machiko Kayaki. The last book by Ms. Kayaki reminds me of a book I bought last year by Yuri Kaneko, which contains retro style garments.

There are few more books on other crafts I brought back with me. I will show them to you later.

With all these books, I thought my luggage might burst. Besides the increased weight of our luggage, there was another issue in returning home. The night before we were leaving Matsumoto, a relatively large typhoon hit Japan. Many railways were experiencing cancellations and delays, including JR Chuo line which we were going to take on the following day. Of course, our train was cancelled following morning and by the time we arrived at the Nagoya airport, we had only 45 minutes before our plane took off. I don’t know if it was this anxiety and nervousness but we had such a hard time overcoming jet lag this time. We were absolutely sleepy by 6 pm for a week! Things are back to normal and I just began to knit again.

Added: I just fond out that you can see more work by Ms. Hiraiwa here.

Long at last!

2007-08-12T14:39:00.000-07:00

Margaret Tudor is assembled and done! She is a hefty beauty in many ways, gave me lots of grieves and frustrations, involved many seaming works, and took me so long. I don’t remember exactly when but I think I started on the project in 2003. And, it weighs 1.1kg. It was abandoned for more than two years before being picked up again last year. As I recall, my hands were not used to working with thin metal needles initially and I had severe pain in my fingers after the first panel was finished. Naturally, I was very reluctant to start the second panel and the project languished in my bag for quite long time. In any case, last summer, I realized that I need to finish those unfinished works before too late. Margaret Tudor was the last one on the list of unfinished works. Now, I can toss the list, at least for now.

The yarn used is Louet Gems Merino Opal in burgundy, about 4 ½ of half pound cones. I used size 1 Inox needles (2.25mm) throughout. I felt that the original garment is too boxy. It should not be close fitting, but closer fitting would be more flattering. Instructions for the smallest size were followed except for a few changes: Side body panels were narrowed by 6 stitches each with the armhole shaping intact. This change resulted in 24 stitches less in the body circumference and 12 stitches less in shoulder width. In order to compensate for the narrower shoulder width and to make sleeves longer than the original, one more rose and thistle motifs were added. Instead of using buttons to hold upper panels down, I used beads. All in all, I am quite satisfied with the finished garment. Oh, the reason why I did not use Scottish Fleet? Well, I did swatch with it to see if I can achieve the specified gauge, and I miserably failed. I just could not do it. I tried a couple of other yarns before I decided on Gems Merino Opal. This is my second project with this yarn and I just love it. Great stitch definitions and a nice color range. Here is me wearing it in summer weather! Quick, cannot stand more than a few minuties!

Margaret Tudor was my third project from Tudor Roses. The next one would be Elizabeth I with camel Dunedin. I am now working on adjusting the pattern as I hear and read that it is large and its neck opening is too wide.

I was very productive this weekend, and I’ve finished my second silk corset. I just love pure silk yarns and Ms. Modesitt’s corset pattern. I am definitely addicted to the smooth feel of silk yarns. Although I have not knitted this design with cotton yarns, I have a feeling that silk yarns provide smoother and closer fitting. The third one would have longer sleeves; maybe elbow length, with flounces.

And, me again.

Addendum: Since a good knitting friend of mine had asked, I am adding the seaming method I used for the record. I used a regular sewing thread and a needle so as not to add more bulk to the garment. I simply used whipped stitches to sew panels together, picking up a half stitch each along the seam line. Now, the exact location of the half stitches I picked. Facing wrong sides of panels with a thistle panel underneath a rose panel, let’s assume that we are seaming the right edge of the rose panel onto the thistle panel. The rose panel is placed right next to the edge of the knitted (as opposed to purled) section of the thistle panel, or the purled thistle section when viewed from right side. I picked the last half stitch of the knitted thistle section (viewed from wrong side), and the outer half stitch at the right edge of the rose panel. The resulting seams were strong enough but not bulky. One thing to note is that the stitches do not line up nicely like one would see when seaming side seams. Rose panels have smaller number of rows than the thistle panels due, of course, to difference in row gauges. So, it is essential to match the thistle and rose patterns with right side up and pin them together well so that you can flip them over without dislocating the patterns.

Silk Corset by Ms. Modesitt

2007-08-05T19:15:00.001-07:00

Lovely silk corset designed by Annie Modesitt is finally done. I used Debbie Bliss Pure Silk, about three skeins and a little bit more for this version. It is not the best yarn one could choose for this project, though: It pills as you knit. Once finished and washed, it looks okay, but not fabulous. I am now knitting version two with Fiesta La Luz Multi, also a pure silk yarn, and the superb quality of Fiesta yarn is staggering.

The smallest size available on the pattern is XS and it is for bust size 90cm. Now, my measurement is nowhere near 90cm. So, I began knitting XS with tighter tension than usual. It did not work out: too small for me! The whole thing was then ripped and I re-started with size S and loosely knitted. That's what you see in the above. See the nicely scooped neck line? It is very important to cast on loosely. Otherwise, the whole look of the corset would be distorted.

There are several changes I made and will follow them on my second version. No I-cord cast off and cast on was used for armholes. I tried the method once but the result did not look as nice as I hoped. Also, I was not sure how big the armholes ought to be and wanted to be able to adjust once the whole garment is knitted up. So, I just used waste yarns to save stitches for armholes, and used cable cast on, done very loosely, to continue underarm sections. The waist section seemed rather short on me and it was lengthened somewhat. It could be even longer I think. The zigzag pattern was made to be symmetric, although it is not in the instruction. Instead of using single crochet to neaten the hem, I used backward single crochet, which is my favorite crochet finishing. Lastly, I sewed the front opening shut. Completely shut. There is no way I would fiddle with 20 buttons every so often, like every second. After all, the fabric is very stretchy and the neck opening is rather wide. Oh, one more thing. The armholes were finished by one additional knitted row and regular cast off done very loosely. Here is me wearing the top.

(I learned that there is an update to the pattern and much smaller sizes are now available. Not that I need them.)

As for Margaret Tudor, I found an old silk buttonhole thread in exact color I needed. All the beads are sewn on the knitted pieces finally.

BdF tank top finished!

2007-07-18T19:02:00.000-07:00

Actually it was finished several days ago. Changes I made are minimal: shorten and widened the shoulder straps. That's all. I love this tank top just as much as the cover tank top from the same issue of BdF magazine. I will be knitting this one again. I used less than 700 yards of Silk City Bounce I bought from Elann. The only complaint I have is that the bottom edge rolls. I may need to apply a crochet edging to stabilize later.

Next is the matching cardigan, but I had to cast on for two projects. I've been thinking of knitting Annie Modesitt's Silk Corset for many months. Initially it was going to be knit with a cotton yarn, but then, I picked up Debbie Bliss Pure Silk at my LYS the other day. Gosh, it feels soooo soft! I've never knitted anything with this type of soft yet slippery yarn. As a matter of fact, I could not use my ball winder as the yarn kept on bunching at the bottom or top of the ball. I ended up winding by hand and that took me less time and frustration. There is always something new to learn. In any case, here is the table with my work in projects.

Moving right along!

2007-07-05T20:13:00.001-07:00

I finished translating the pattern! It was not too bad. I am very much encouraged in this business of translating French patterns. The front is all ready and currently working on the back.

Here is a close up of the pretty lace pattern on the horizontal band. It will be used vertically on the gardigan sleeves. Love it!

New project

2007-06-21T20:01:00.001-07:00

I began to knit another tank top from BdF no. 123 issue. Despite the slowness, translating French knitting pattern is going relatively well. Abi has posted useful sites for translating French patterns. Margaret Tudor is on hold for now. I need to hand-sew panels together using sewing thread. It should not take too long, yet, I am procrastinating.

また　BdF no. 123からの　タンクトップを編み始めました。フランス語を訳すのには時間がかかりますが、ボチボチとやってます。ＡｂｉさんのＷｅｂページに、英語翻訳に役立つ情報があります。Margaret Tudorのほうは　未だ放置したまま。

PS. Here is something for Bergere de France fans.

PS. Bergere de France フアンの方はこちらへもどうぞ。　

Slow going

2007-06-15T17:55:00.000-07:00

Not much crafting is going on in my studio lately. At least all the panels for Margaret Tudor are finished. Some hand stitching of panels and finishing are waiting for me.

ここのところ、殆ど編んだり縫ったりする暇が無く、少しクサレ気味。とは言っても、Ｍａｒｇａｒｅｔ　Ｔｕｄｏｒの　１６のパネルは、何とか完成させました。　後は、パネルを縫い合わせ、袖のカフスを編んで、ビーズを縫い付けるだけ。

Next in line for knitting would be this twin set. Recently I found this blog by Abi who is also thinking of knitting the tank top of the set. She has some interesting information on Bergere de France CDs. I wonder if their Canadian rep is carrying the CDs. Any idea, anyone?

Ｍａｒｇａｒｅｔ　Ｔｕｄｏｒの次は、このツインセット。　最近、 AbiさんのＢｌｏｇを見つけました。　彼女も同じツインセットを編む予定のようです。

For sewing projects, I am thinking of a wrap dress for this beautiful printed eyelet fabric. There are several options out there for woven fabrics. At the moment, I am inclined to this one from February issue of Burda World of Fashion. Here is the line drawing of the design.

洋裁のほうでは、　この布地で、前うちあわせのドレスを作りたいのですが、どのデザインにするかで、ずいぶん悩んでしまいました。　結局、Ｂｕｒｄａ　Ｗｏｒｌｄ　ｏｆ　Ｆａｓｈｉｏｎの　　このデザイン　にしようと検討中です。　この写真では、細かいデザインがはっきりしません。　このリンクのほうが　分かります。　

Fabrics from NYC

2007-05-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

While we were in NYC in April, I had a chance to visit famed Metro Textiles. While I was there, I finally met Ann of Gorgeous Things in person. She is an energetic lady with full of sewing ideas. It was really great to meet a fellow sewist.

Here are most of what I purchased at Mr. Kashi's store. Some of them are for my DDs but most of them are for myself.

The first project will be a wrap dress with the paisley print cotton eyelet. I bought some light weight cotton in fuchsia for lining the eyelet. The green light weight wool will be a jacket or a spring coat. The 'balloon' print is a silk and will be used as a lining for the wool.

I am plowing through my pile of sewing and pattern books to decide which one to make. I love this part of the project!

Another handbag from Japanese knitting book

2007-05-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

I finished this handbag sometime ago. It is from fall/winter 2006 issue of "European Hand Knits" by Nihon Vogue.

The original is done with wool yarn and has leather handles. Mine has acrylic handles and Berroco Suede in Chickadee Pink was used. It is crochet entirely. Photos below show stitch patterns better. The horizontal ridges are created by "raised double crochet on front side". I referred to "Basic Crochet & Knit" by Ondori to find out the name of this stitch. In Japanese, it is called 'Omote Hikiage Ami.' You would crochet facing the wrong side which you can see in the bottom photo. The slanted ridges are created by knitting crochet chains.

Rose beads on Margaret Tudor

2007-04-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

Fellow Knitsmiths, Nancy, has taken time for me to select some beads for Margaret Tudor. She has her atelier on Newbury Street and is close to a bead shop. I trust her taste for good reason. The first choice, matt finished beads shaped like a rose.

The second choice, oval shaped beads with considerably shinier finish.

We decided that the first is the right one. Its round shape and 'rose' are perfect features for this design, don't you think? I am now finished with 10 panels! That is, all the body panels are done. I went ahead and assembled all the body panels except for the side seams and knit the neck band and hem bands. I made the body narrower by eliminating 12 stitches from front and back bodies, keeping the armhole shaping and neck opening intact. This means that the shoulder width is narrowed by 6 stitches and I was anxious to find out how much I need to lengthen sleeves. After trying it on, it was clear that I need to add quite a lot to the sleeve length: one more thistle pattern needs to be added. I think I got lucky. Just a minor math of adjusting the increase pattern.

Lizard Ridge Afghan finished!

2007-04-01T19:19:00.000-07:00

I used 24 balls of Noro Kureyon to knit 30 panels. For the edging, I was not quite satisfied with the original pattern instruction and did somewhat fancier version from this pattern book by Hirose Mitsuharu.
オリジナルより大きめにしたかったので、野呂さんのくれよんを２４玉使ってパネルを３０枚あみました。エッジングはKnitty のパターンにしたがわず、広瀬光春さんのパターンを使いました。

Pardon me for the poor quality of the close up below. Hopefully, you get the idea of what was done differently.
あまりよく撮れてませんが、エッジングのアップです。

It was an absolutely fun and satisfying project from the beginning to the end. I don't know how Mr. Noro Eisaku does it, but his colors are just gorgeous. They are really captivating. The designer, Laura Aylor, used Kureyon so cleverly. I am grateful to both! DDs were impressed more than any other projects I've ever done. They requested to have one each. We shall see.
最初から最後まで、興味を失うことなく随分速く編めました。　野呂栄作さんの糸の色使いは素晴らしく、一度編み始めるとなかなか止められません。　デザイナーのLaura Aylorさんの引き返し編みの使い方には慣れるまで少し手こずりましたが、よく出来ています。　私の娘たちも気に入って、欲しいと言われ、ニッコリです。

追記:　日本語で書くのって、ずいぶん難しいです。おかしな日本語になっているかもしれません。　これから、少しずつ日本語で書くつもりです。　宜しく！

Five Panels for Margaret Tudor

2007-03-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

Finally assembled, just for the back, though. Close up below.

Nine more panels to go!

Thirty Panels for Lizard Ridge Afghan

2007-03-25T21:35:00.000-07:00

Finally finished knitting all the panels for Lizard Ridge Afghan. The designer really knows how to use Noro yarns. This wave pattern can work perfectly beautifully in garments, especially skirts, I think.

VK Capecho

2007-03-14T17:43:00.000-07:00

This is not for myself, but for my DDs.

I used Elann's Esprit in Natural with 4 mm needles and knitted size S. I followed the pattern as written through Pentagon 11. For sleeves, I cast on 15 stitches to prevent extra material at underarm. Also, only one side of Pentagons 8 and 9 contribute to the bottom hem, rather than 2 sides. The sides adjacent to the sleeve pentagons were brought to the back and stitched onto the back hem, resulting in considerably smaller hem circumference. My daughters are 9 and 11 years old. I think they look rather cute in it.

For more views go here.

Sewing Workshop Tribeca Jacket

2007-03-10T12:19:00.000-08:00

This is a sewing pattern from The Sewing Workshop. They are one of my favorite independent pattern companies. I followed their additional instructions found in their gallery page and made the shirt into a jacket: fully self-faced front bodice and partially self-faced back.

Instructions were good and easy to follow. I made some changes and did not follow them exactly, however. The body was shortened by 2 3/8" for the front. The original pattern has standard 5/8" seam allowance and the hem allowance is also 5/8" everywhere. This was great for the doubled front bodice. For the back, I wanted add more substantial hem, and it was shortened by 1" only to create 2" hem, original 5/8" seam allowance plus 1 3/8". Sleeve hems were also widened to 2". The side back seams were encased by the doubled front bodice, eliminating raw edges along sides completely. The photo below shows the side seams in the center.

The blue one was intended to match St. Charles-Noro outfit. I think the beige one is the better choice, don't you?

I just love the way the button is framed. Little detail but makes a big difference. I used cross grain to make them show more.

If you are interested in more photos of the outfit, please visit
here.

Flower Shawl by Shida Hitomi

2007-03-10T08:16:00.000-08:00

I discovered Ms. Hitomi Shida's knit work only recently, last summer to be exact. Her knit designs are very intricate and gorgeous. The above issue is the most recent one. She also published a collection of her designs from past issues of Couture Knit (Let's Knit Series).

There is a gorgeous flower shawl in the recent issue. You can take a look by clicking the second button on the right panel here.

A friend of mine is interested in this design and I am attempting a translation of the text below. For the stitch pattern, you will need the book.

The yarn used is Dia Keito Dia Couture Silk Lame. Scroll down to page 15 to see the colors and the yarn specs. The required amount is 340g or 9 balls. The knitting needles used is Japanese size 6, which is about 4 mm. Also required is a crochet hook size 5/0, or 3 mm. The gauge is 31 rows in patterned stitches per 10 cm.

Cast on 7 stitches and follow the charts. The forth cast on stitch is at the center and indicated by a darker shade in the charts. Purl all the stitches on wrong side. Rows 27 through 50 are repeated five times: for rows 51 through 74, repeat the stitches indicated by the blank start twice, for rows 75 through 98, repeat three times, for rows 99 through 122, repeat four times, and for rows 123 through 146, repeat five times. For rows 147 through 170, repeat the stitches indicated by the black star 6 times, and for rows 171 through 190, repeat the marked stitches 7 times.

Here is the Flower Shawl from the book. Sorry for the poor quality of the photo.

Bergere de France Tank Top

2007-03-04T19:17:00.000-08:00

This is the cover of the Magazine Tricot no. 123 issue by Bergere de France where I found beautiful tank tops. I believe it was published in 2003. I acquired the magazine in early 2004 with help of Sandrine and Michelle.

I was not much interested in knitting tank tops until I saw this photo (cover tank top) and this one (twin set) by Sandrine. Once I saw these beauties, I had to knit them.

Here is the twin set.

In early 2004, the magazine was already all sold out and out of print. Those who are interested in knitting these tanks need to contact Bergere de France directly and request reprinting. I hope they would oblige. Once you get the pattern, you need to deal with French instructions. I was lucky enough to know a fellow knitsmith, Alison, who generously offered to translate the pattern for me.

Next, which yarn to use? The gauge of the cover tank is 33 stitches and 49 rows per 4" square, between fingering and lace weight. I picked up Sandnes Mandarin Petit and began knitting. The orange one below is my first version. My gauge was quite off and I had to do a lot of adjustments. The horizontal eyelet bar was right across my bust which I thought was not appropriate. So, I did the second version with Rowan cotton 4 ply, moving the bar further down. BTW, this yarn was no better than Mandarin Petit. Too thick for the tank. I actually knitted the whole thing optimistically thinking it would be just fine. When I completed it, it was obvious, I made a giant tank. I ripped the whole thing all the way down to the leaf motif band in 30 minutes. Eventually, I got it knitted up. You can see me wearing them here. Which one looks better? Orange one, right? BdeF designer knew better.

As a headstrong knitter that I am, I had to find the right yarn: Pearl Cotton 5/2 on size 2.25 mm needles. Unfortunately, the third version remained as shown below for more than a year. Simply, it was not fun knitting at all.

Eventually, I convinced myself I cannot have it unfinished and began working on it.

This time, success!! I simply followed the pattern as is. Phew!!

Added: Here is something I just found on Bergere de France. You may want to take a look.

Margaret Tudor

2007-02-13T20:58:00.000-08:00

I have been knitting this pullover for many months, on and off, for some years. There are 16 panels to this garment and I was up to 8 done yesterday. Today, I have two less. I found out that I got mixed up with k2tog and ssk. I knew something was not quite right, but I never took time to look more carefully ... until yesterday.

Surprisingly, even after unraveling two side panels, my interest level in this project is quite high. My mind is on buttons. I don't want to use buttons as specified. Instead, I am thinking of some beads, onyx or garnet beads.

What I've been busy with

2007-01-29T19:38:00.000-08:00

These handbags are based on very talented Kate's pattern which you can request for at her blog. She has an excellent FAQ site as well. It was great when I had to face K11tog challenge.

For the lime version, I used 6 balls of Idéna Cotton Lux in color 570, and four skeins of On-Line Clip color 57 for the aubergine version. The latter is a heavier yarn and the handbag is bulkier and more textured. The handles are from MJ Trimming. I just had to use these faux tortoise ones.

In order to fit the handles, I reduced the number of stitches at the top by 1/3. Once the knitting was done, the dimensions of the bag were determined. I wanted the bag to be heavily textured. For that, the lining had to be smaller than the knitted fabric, particularly in height.

The width of the lining is the same as the knitted fabric.

The paper pattern piece seen above has 5/8" seam allowances at the bottom and sides. The top will be flash with the handbag opening and no allowance is added. The lining has three layers: black fabric as outer lining, heavy fusible interfacing, and cotton print as inner lining.

First, the outer lining was constructed by fusing the interfacing to the wrong side of the black fabric, sewing the bottom and two sides with right side together, turning inside out, and ironing it to shape.

The inner lining has pockets which was made with the same cotton print. For firmer pocket, the same interfacing was fused to one side only.

The finished pocket piece was sewn onto the right side of the inner lining fabric.

Sew the inner lining like the outer lining. As you can see in the photo above, the inner lining was cut on fold along the bottom.

Slip the inner lining into the outer lining as shown and sew the top edge through all three layers.

With the wrong side out, place the knitted bag under the lining. At this point, the knitted bag is much larger than the lining.

Tack the lining to the knitted bag at four corners and between corners.

Here is a close up of tucking.

Now, it is time to flip the bag right side out! The bag has the nice shape I wanted.

Hand sew the knitted facing onto the lining, attach the handles, and DONE!!

Stacy Charles - Noro Outfit

2007-01-05T19:42:00.000-08:00

This outfit began with a skirt. Its pattern is based on #18 ZigZag Skirt from St. Charles Collezione Summer '05. Textured yarns and solid colored yarns are cleverly combined to create vertical zigzag patterns which attracted me very much.

Then, one day, I came across K1C2 Tartalette #641 at my LYS. Its blue and orange combination caught my eyes. That was it. Next, I picked up Noro Daria #12 and St. Charles Rialto #29 for textured yarns and various cotton/silk/wool blends in orange, blue, mustard yellow and chocolate brown, all solid colors but not necessarily in the same gauge range. The only concern was Noro Daria. Would a stiff cable work with other yarns? I felt so strongly about the colors being right, it was decided that I have to make it all work together.

The original garment photos are shown on the left. The skirt has a yoke with a cord threaded at the top to keep the skirt in place, and is matched with a collared tank. Several changes were made to the original pattern. I added an elastic casing to the top of the yoke and decided not to wear the skirt on the hip. The matching tank did not suit my taste and was replaced by a tank top from Katia knitting magazine from a few years ago. Casting on and off with solid colored cotton blend yarn, Noro Daria tank worked out fine. I completely ignored the recommended gauge on Noro Daria, however.

Here are the covers of the magazines used. I needed two balls each of Tartalette and Rialto, three balls of Noro Daria, and one ball each in four solid colors for the skirt. For the tank, 7 skeins of Noro Daria were needed.

I am still working on the outfit. I am planning to sew a light jacket with silk sateen in smokey blue. At the moment, I am planning to use The Sewing Workshop's Tribeca Shirt pattern.

Jumping in

2006-12-31T18:44:00.000-08:00

Oh, what the heck! I am going to start my blog on my creative activities. See you next year!