Frederick

Mastery does not come from dabbling.  We have to be prepared to pay the price.  We need to have the sustained enthusiasm that motivates us to give our best.
- Eknath Easwaran

I have been obsessed in trying to figure something out.  Every day I have my swatches, charts and notes out and every day I am defeated by math and the universe.  But I don't give up.  Usually after a week of watching me try and fail my hubby will step in with some great ideas.  If Friday rolls around and I still don't have an answer then I'll ask the knitting girls for some input.  If all else fails; I close my eyes, quiet my soul and pray.

Sometimes it seems that these obsessions of mine are a hindrance; but truly they help to motivate me and propel me forward.  They force me to question and think about things in a way that I might not have ever thought about.

And while I'm in this "special" place where I'm out of my box and my routines I see things from an enlightened perspective.  It was from this "place" that I cleaned my altar room on Saturday.  I celebrated and mourned, I laughed and wept.  I held each of my treasures and lovingly dusted them off and remembered why they were there before placing them back.  I made sure that Mom had her bracelet and Dad had his dog-tags.  I found the letters that were hidden behind his picture and wept again.  All the time I was playing spiritual music and singing when the spirit moved me and this cathartic act of simply cleaning and remembering changed everything.  Time had stopped for me and when I emerged from my cocoon I realized three hours had passed in what seemed like a half and hour to me.

But then life happened and I left the "special" place until much later in the week.  I had been fiddling with an idea that had suddenly popped into my head but there was no real time to test it.  At dinner I showed it to my husband on a napkin and he showed me his idea and there it sat.

After my spiritual bath I usually pick a tarot card and then meditate for a bit before going to bed but instead I looked at my beautifully clean altar and looked into Mom and Dad's eyes and felt a stirring of compassion and love; like a hug but with more to it.  Once again I got out a pen and began to write out the pattern I was trying to crack line by line; but this time, it worked.

So I've decided to dedicate this shawl pattern, Frederick, (which will be kinda "hush hush" until after I teach it) to my beloved parents.

Here is the blurb part of my pattern:

"This shawl is dedicated to my beloved parents who taught me to read at a very young age.  Frederick by Leo Lionni, is a book about a mouse who stored away things for the cold winter days like sunshine, words and colors.  My hope is that on those gray days that pass through our lives you can take out this shawl and its colors will bring you joy."

Thank you Mom and Dad for everything!  You were always there for me; even now I can feel your love and support; your compassion and your kindness.  I love you now and forever.

May your crafts be full of color that make you smile,
Ruinwen
:)

The Lives We Weave

Our life is composed greatly from dreams, from the unconscious, and they must be brought into connection with action.  They must be woven together.
-Anais Nin

In my last post I talked about how my Mom planted seeds in me that have been growing for quite a while now.  My love of knitting has only grown over the years and I suspect it always will be a huge part of me. I believe that it reaches down into my DNA since my ancestors knitted too.  When I visited my Great-Aunt I saw my first glimpse of a stash.  She housed more yarn then most stores I had visited.  She knit every spare moment she had and I was told by a visitor that one cannot leave her house without being gifted a pair of slippers.

So this love of knitting is woven within me; the past and present come together in this beautiful tapestry of fiber, creativity and family.  In my life I seem to be drawn to other crafters who help to weave another row into my life that bring friendship, diversity and community.  My students add another layer that allows me to push myself to learn new things that I can share and to be patient as my students teach me.  Each row, every layer creates an even more beautiful fabric then I could have ever imagined.  Each day offers me new opportunities to learn, to grow and to teach.

In the fiber that I work with surges the elements; air, fire, water and earth.  The sheep eat grasses that have been kissed by the sun, blessed by rain and nurtured by gentle winds.  It seeps into their wool binding them to nature's dance.  That wool is harvested by people, carded, spun and made into fiber.  That fiber is packaged and distributed and somehow ends up in my hands.

The wool I knit with now, like every strand of fiber I have, has a story and people, creatures and elements weave that story into what I now hold.  As I hold this fiber my life intertwines with theirs and I feel the tug of community through my craft.  This is one reason I really like MD Sheep and Wool festival; I love to see the people who are making the yarn that I will be using.  I like to talk to them about their sheep, goats, alpacas, angoras...etc.  I love to hear the care and love that they have for their creatures; it endears them to me and I can feel that love every time I knit a stitch.

I've always wanted to knit some Cormo.  I love a good Merino and the Cormo is in the same fiber family.  It is a cross between the Corriedale and Saxon Merino. This year Bijou Basin Ranch was there to make my dreams come true.  I got Bijou Bliss which is 50 yak and 50 Cormo and feels soft like a dream but full of bounce so I know it will drape beautifully.

Then I found a pure Cormo skein from Lavender Hill Farm and I bought that too.  Note:  I couldn't find any Cormo on their web page right now but they said that they would be carrying it in the future.  They have a ton of other wonderful yarns in a myriad of fibers.  I found out that they are more or less local too, so that was nice to know.  The Cormo is so squishable; I just adore it.  So thank you to the universe for allowing me to experience this wonderful fiber in two different ways!  :)

In other news I'm working on something new.  This is the linen stitch.  A knit stitch that is very deceptive.  It looks and feels like a fabric that has been woven.  Really, I wish you could feel this swatch.  It feels smooth on the right side and would feel fabulous on the skin.  The other side is full of little bumps that you can feel in the fabric.  It is an interesting stitch.

As you can see, I have been playing around with color to see what would happen.  Changing the colors every two rows makes a kind of checkerboard effect; which I think would be really lovely with a solid and variegated yarn alternated throughout the fabric.

Linen stitch is really, really easy IMHO.  Once you memorize where the yarn should be held for the slips, it flows like any other stitch.  This stitch tends to be tight so you might find going up a needle size or two will be helpful in stopping it from pulling too tight and curling.  Also, this stitch is awesome with pooling yarns as it breaks up the colorway and disperses it throughout the rows.

Linen stitch is just two rows over and over.  This is the pattern for knitting on straights.  An even number of stitches have been loosely cast on.

Row #1:     *K1, sl1 with the yarn held in front (WYIF)* repeat ** to end of row
Row #2:     *P1, sl1 with the yarn held in back (WYIB)* repeat ** to end of row

All slips are done purlwise regardless of whether the yarn is in the front or the back.  Each row will end with a slipped stitch and the yarn will have to be returned to the front (purl) or the back (knit) for the next stitch.

On circulars it becomes easier since your purl row is now a knit stitch. Again this pattern is for an even number of stitches.


Row #1:     *sl1 (WYIF), K1* repeat ** to end of round
Row #2:     *K1, sl1  (WYIF)* repeat ** to end of round


All slips are still done purlwise when circulars are used.

And that's it!

There are many ways to bind off linen stitch.

Some people use a knit two stitches pass the 2nd stitch over the first stitch bind off; yet there is many complaints about this edge being too tight.  I find sometimes this can be alleviated by using a needle that is one or two sizes up from the current one used to knit the fabric.

Some knit 2 stitches together and put that stitch back on the needle.  Then the process is repeated until the last stitch.  This will make a looser bind off; but there are still complaints about that as well.

My personal loose bind-off  is to knit two stitches move them from the right-hand needle to the left, slipping them tip to tip and knit them through the back loops.  Move the resulting stitch back to the left-hand needle and knit the next two stitches through the back loops.  Continue in this manner until all stitches are bound off.  This is a really stretchy bind off.   This is what I used in the swatch photo.

Some people bind off in pattern by slipping a stitch, then knitting a stitch and then passing the slip stitch over the knit stitch on the right-hand needle.  Then you would slip the next stitch and pass the 2nd stitch on the right-hand needle over that one and so forth until you had bound off all stitches.  This is said to produce a lovely bind off that helps keep the flow of the linen stitch.

I read a blog of a Russian knitter who found the original bind off she used unsettling and created her own.  Her post on it is here.

In the end it what you prefer; so experiment and find what you like.  I think I will put in a life-line before I start trying the different methods so I don't rip back and make a mess.  :)

Happy crafting!
Ruinwen
:)

Remembering Mom

Here is the memory board we did for Mom.  I think it captured her life through the years.

This has been a long week but we have been taking it one day at a time.  My sister and I have been inseparable since last Friday and I think we are both working through the grief and trying to celebrate the wonderful woman that was our Mother.

Everything happened so quickly; but that means she didn't suffer and that is a blessing.  

We found a sweater in her drawer that was huge and I fell in love with the yarn.  It was six strands of different colors all knitted together and I thought I could reclaim the yarn.  

This is me and my sis trying to figure out how in the heck they put this vest together.  Not pictured is my awesome hubby who helped us.  It took us SIX hours to reclaim this vest.  Once we started we couldn't stop and it was 1 am when we finally were rewarded with many, many balls of yarn.

So moral of the story is that a vest made of intarsia is probably not worth reclaiming no matter how awesome the colors are.  :)

It was my beloved Mom who taught me how to knit so many years ago.  Forgive me if I've already told you this.  She had me knit a scarf out of ugly orange yarn for the homeless.  I hated my stitches and ripped it out over and over.  But, I finished that scarf and there was pride in that act.

Little did I know that a year later when I passed some yarn I would want to knit again.  The creative seeds that had been planted were growing and shaping my destiny without me even being aware.  I started thinking about making another scarf and the next one I made was black and simple but the yarn was yummy and I didn't rip as much.

Each time I went back to knitting it became more and more enjoyable until I wanted to try something new and that was the purl stitch.  After that, the world of knitting opened up to me like a flower blooming in the springtime.

So thank you Mom for giving me something that has seen me through the hard times and helped me to cherish the good times.  Thank you for teaching me something that reaches down into my roots and connects me with my ancestors every time I make a stitch.  Thank you for giving me something that lets me honor you with each project and every smile that a new yarn brings as I start something or get a new idea.  I love you...now and forever.

My sister and I want to thank all of you for your love and support over the last week.  We are blessed by our cyber family and we send hugs to all of you!

Happy Crafting,
Ruinwen
:)

Stranded

I know that you will understand the feeling as I write about an WIP of mine that has been just waiting for me to pick her up again.  It was a gift from my parents when they lived back at the house; which should tell you how long ago that was.

I saw the Sipalu Bag at Knitpicks and I fell in love.  I'm the kind of Aries that jumps into everything with cannons blazing and only when I am knee deep in chaos do I stop to ponder my actions.

This kit came with 16 balls of Palette which were all so lovely to look at and I pet them lovingly...and that was it.  After reading over the instructions I put the kit away.  Yep that's me...or was me...but I digress.

Now and again I would pull out my kit and then I would find a reason to not knit it and back into the recesses of my UFOs it would go.

In 2011 I had played with Fair Isle a bit on my own; as I do most things, and enjoyed it enough to take a foray into "the kit".  This time I looked at the Fair Isle as an adventure and created a provisional cast on and began to knit Fair Isle.

Now mind you I moved balls back and forth to strand and switch colors but my strands or floats on the back looked pretty good and my fronts did too.  I was pretty darn proud of myself and knit the entire side band.  Now all that moving of balls had become second nature and I could switch those colors pretty fast.  I breezed through the little side welt and cast on my 4th side provisional and began to knit the bag itself.

About six rows after the welt in I dropped two stitches and put them on lock ring markers and put "the kit" away.

And then it was excuses and this and that and really I didn't remember why I had stopped knitting; but I was constantly reminded of "the kit" because the bag of yarn is right by where I place my purse.

Fast forward to 2013 and I finally take a two-handed, two stranded knitting class in Fair Isle.  Now there were no more excuses.  I teach picking up stitches; I can handle some drops and I pick them up easily making sure the color sequences follow and I am back to knitting.  No more ball moving; I just knit with a color in each hand and strand as I go. The whole thing flows without effort.  I am back in the game.

My goal is to knit on "the Two Side of Me" as I now will call her, at least once a week,  This is only the bag front that I'm currently working on.  And it still needs to be blocked.  There is still a back and a top and a cord of some sort to tie it all together.  So I have a ways to go but that is okay.

I decided on that name because I will knit the other side in the opposing color chart that they included.  I liked them both and I thought why not?  Not sure how I will do the welt yet...but that is a long...long...way off.

I have an FO to share as well.  Here is the brioche scarf all posed and looking very Halloweeny IMHO.  This was a really fun project and I hope to make lots more.

Have a beautiful day,
Ruinwen
:)

P.S.  Thank you for all you kind comments regarding Mom; they mean more then words can convey.  She passed in her sleep last night; she went peacefully into the next world where Dad was waiting for her.

A Little Rain Must Fall

Be still sad heart and cease repining; 
Behind the clouds the sun is shining, 
Thy fate is the common fate of all, 
Into each life a little rain must fall, 
Some days must be dark and dreary. 
Longfellow

I'm sorry that this post is very personal and not full of knitting or spirituality or really anything of valve to you dear reader.  Today I just kind of ask for a hug from my cyber space family and next week I will be back with things to show and beautiful yarns to dazzle and tempt you with.

The thing I have been dreading has happened and most days I feel like my world is just shifting out of order. Mom's cancer has become untreatable. They have said she has two to six months to live and to get her affairs in order. Rain was pitter patterning on the window and the moment is forever frozen in my mind. Lonestar was playing when the Doc told her:

I'm already there
Take a look around
I'm the sunshine in your hair
I'm the shadow on the ground
I'm the whisper in the wind
I'm your imaginary friend
And I know, I'm in your prayers
Oh I'm already there

I was knitting my brioche before I left and I felt Dad's hand on my arm so much so that I turned to see who had touched me and he said, "You do such beautiful work.  It will be okay."

I thought I was going to drop a stitch which is harder to fix in the brioche then you might think; but he was talking about Mom.

In my heart; I know that I let go a long time ago so I could accept this new woman that my Mom had become.  Her dementia makes it hard to talk about most anything for long but I tell the same stories with a smile on my face and treat her with love and respect.

I know she is so weary of everything and she misses Dad terribly.  She hardly eats now; but I can ply her with chocolate and cashews when I visit and her eyes become so bright and my heart smiles a bit to see her so happy.

I called Hospice today to start the process of having them watch over Mom.  Right now she isn't in any pain and most days she has forgotten that she has cancer; which is good I guess.  But Hospice will assure that if she needs anything like pain meds or whatever, it will be there.  They also tell me that they have a wonderful grief counselor and maybe one of these days I will check into that.  Not now though.

So if you are of the praying sort, if you could say one for my Mom I would truly be thankful.

I wish you all a beautiful day,
Ruinwen
:)

Are You Ready To Burp?

So a few weeks ago I tackled the subject of barking and now I'm on to burping.   So in all of knitting is there anything that makes you laugh more then brioche?  I mean all this barking and burping can really get hilarious!

brp or burp stitch is made by purling the stitch that was made on the previous row together with it's YO.  When you look at your needle you will have a stitch by itself (that is the stitch that you slip) and the two stitches clustered together.  Those two will be the ones that you purl together or burp.

You will also need how to make a sl1yof, brp1:

This stitch is a little trickier then our bark stitch.  Let me break it down.  With the yarn in front you will slip the first stitch.  Then you will YO.  To do this when a purl is your next stitch, you bring the working yarn from the front to the back over the needle, and then to the front under the needle...or you circle it clockwise.  This creates a YO and allows the yarn to be in position for the purl stitch.  You finish the stitch by purling the next two stitches together.

Another thing worth noting is on the 2nd (Row 2 WS CC) and 3rd (Row 1 RS MC) rows are comprised of a bark1, yf, sl1yo.  The 2nd row will end with a YO and you will have to hold it in place as you turn your work so it doesn't escape.  

After you turn your work to start the 3rd row make sure that you capture that YO with your working yarn.

The 3rd row will end with a YO as well.  This time you will not be securing it until the last stitch of the 4th (Row 2 RS CC) row so make sure it is present before making the burp which will anchor it.

The only colors left in the Gradient this time were black and orange so excuse my Halloween theme in the middle of spring.  And pardon my actual lack of black.  The ball started in white from the center though all the layers showing were grey and black.  Go figure.  :)

So this will be continuing from our one color brioche.  Make sure you are knitting on a circular or dpn or it will be impossible to work the stitch.  I attached my new color over my old color with a slip knot just to keep everything in place.  I can take it out later.

In two color brioche you will first knit with the main color then the contrasting color on the same side.  This is the reason for the circular or dpn; you will slide your work back like an old typewriter and make two passes on each side.  Maybe it is more simply written:

Wrong side
        Burp with color A, do not turn your work, slide your work back to the right hand needle
        Bark with color B, turn work
Right side
        Bark with color A, do not turn your work, slide your work back to the right hand needle
        Burp with color B, turn work


Note:  I realize that I'm starting from one color brioche so the columns show the shift in stitches.  This is for a technique class where knitting one piece is desirable   Also, I kind of like the shift, but if you don't you can start fresh and follow these instructions:

Begin with casting on an even number of stitches in your MC; then work the set up row before following the four row pattern.

Set up Row CC:                     wyif *sl1yo P1* rep ** to end

If you are continuing from the one-color brioche then you should start here.

The actual pattern looks like this:

Row 1 WS MC  BURP  PURL:              wyif *sl1yof, brp1* rep** to end

do not turn your work, side your work back to the right hand needle

Row 1 WS CC   BARK  KNIT:             *brk1, yfsl1yo* rep ** to end

turn your work

Row 2 RS MC   BURP   KNIT:              *brk1, yfsl1yo* rep ** to end

do not turn your work, slide your work back to the right hand needle

Row 2 RS CC    BARK  PURL:               wyif  *sl1yof, brp1* rep ** to end

turn your work

Repeat these 4 rows until you have the length you desire.

The pure genius of this stitch is just spellbinding to me.  I also love the color possibilities that you can make with this pattern.  You can play with warm and cool colors in your favorite hues and you can create an original scarf just for you.

Oh, edited to add after ripping out the my original swatch...brioche should be done on a needle size one or two sizes down from the recommended ball band or you will be loosey-goosey like my sample and the colors will show through.

May your days be full of color,
Ruinwen
:)

Going with the Flow

This week I've been swatching and madly designing for an upcoming lace class and I don't have much to show you.  I did finish my squishy brioche scarf and I think he loves it.  Everyone who saw it had to give it a squeeze or too to celebrate the softness.  :)

I've been working hard on making this shawl flow from one pattern to the next.  The idea is that a student would start with simple eyelet rows and then the design would progress and grow as the student does.  I'm actually pretty darn happy with the flow of the overall design.

Like most things in life there are rules to lace.  They are not steadfast and can be manipulated as one desires but it will change the shape of your garment and that needs to be taken into consideration.

YOs are the black holes of the knitting world.  If you make one and do not pair it with a decrease your garment will grow.  You have probably seen this with the most simple of blankets and shawls that increase a stitch on every row and slowly a triangle grows magically before your eyes.  These shaping increases are usually in the center and / or on the sides but they can be sprinkled about wherever you wish to achieve the shape you are looking for.

But back to black holes.  The YO creates a disturbance in the balance of the fabric and depending on where you put your paired decrease it can shape the fabric in ways that can't be seen on the chart.

Take for instance this simple pattern:
SK2P - slip 1 stitch purlwise, knit 2 stitches together, pass the slipped stitch over the knit stitch

Row 1:     (RS)   K1, YO, K3, SK2P, K3, YO, K1
Row 2:     (WS) On this and all WS odd rows purl all the way across
Row 3:     K2, YO, K2, SK2P, K2, YO, K2
Row 5:     K3, YO, K1, SK2P, K1, YO, K3
Row 7:     K4, YO, SK2P, YO, K4

Now look at a swatch of this pattern.  From the chart it looks like there should be nice little diagonal lines with YOs next to them; but this is not the case.  See how the fabric is pulled into a rounded shape around the YOs on the second repeat?   All the energy in this swatch is flowing towards the SK2Ps from both directions.  This is an awesome effect and depending on how you shape pattern it can look like leaves, feathers or scales.

As you can see I used the above pattern to springboard into another.  I've found by charting the YOs first I can get the basic shape of a piece.  After that I make sure all my non-shaping increases are paired with decreases; but it is in the swatch that everything truly becomes clear.  What I thought were lines become gentle curves or stacked decreases that pull the eye in such a way that they look like a stem of a leaf...the truth the swatch can show one is endless.  This is one of the reasons that I just love lace...it is always surprising me.  :)



May your crafting bring you joy,
Ruinwen
:)