Weaving steadily, knitting and crochet too

I've been making progress on various projects lately, but haven't managed to get an opportunity to blog about them, not helped by the lack of photos. My Snow Queen shawl is getting larger, and I'm on the last chart now. It's just a big blob, so no picture yet. Other knitting news involves a Printed Silk cardigan started. I've only managed to do a few inches on the back so far, but it's looking good. I'm using Sirdar Just Soya DK in the Spinach colourway. I swatched with 3.75mm needles and got gauge, but when I washed the swatch it grew a lot. So I cast on with 3.5mm needles for a smaller size and I'm hoping for the best.

I also finished a crocheted sweater which needs a photo shoot yet. Because I like to crochet, I started another garment, this time a top down raglan cardigan. The yarn is Sirdar Countrystyle in a brightish green, and I'm using a 4.5mm hook. I'm designing it as I go along.

I warped the loom with some 4 ply acrylic/wool yarn for a seat cover and cushion cover. I threaded it for an 8 shaft straight draw, and sampled a few twill patterns before settling on one for the seat cover, and a different one for the cushion. The colour scheme is not my favourite, but it needs to emulate the existing one which is brown. The sett is 15 epi.

Here is my very first broken warp thread, well actually it frayed rather than broke, but I fixed it okay. Also visible is my tally counter. I press once per pick and can then find out where I am if my concentration is broken. My sliding beater is working really well, it's the best improvement we could have made to this loom. This fabric is off the loom now and washed and steamed, ready for sewing.

I wanted to weave some more tea towels since I've been using the rigid heddle ones all the time, and it's lovely to be handling your handiwork on a daily basis. So when I discovered this project article on the Interweave site I just had to follow it up. I'd heard about network drafting and wondered what it is and the article removes some of the mystery. I've been buying some cones of 3/14 combed cotton in various colours and it should work well for towels so I put on a 4m warp back to front at 25 epi using my new raddle, and have started weaving the first towel after trying a few different weft colours. My temple finally arrived after a 3 month wait so I'm using a temple for the first time and it really helps with keeping the selvedge threads straight for beating. I decided on navy weft for the first towel, and I'm about half way through it now.

Overshot

It amazed me when I measured the fabric I'd woven for some armchair arm protectors when the sizes matched precisely. Maybe I'm getting more consistent in my beating. This is overshot on 4 shafts and there are two pairs each with a different pattern. I'm so glad I bought a walking foot for my sewing machine, because it makes hemming so much easier.

The warp and tabby weft are 3/14 combed cotton and the pattern weft is no.5 perle cotton. 20 epi and 40 ppi.

Finally, a picture of the most recent socks in progress, plain stocking stitch on 2.75mm needles. The yarn is 4 Seasons, but I can't find the ball band for any more details.

The Snow Queen shawl is making steady progress, I'm now nearly one third through chart F.

Hibernating

Since my last post, I've been working on a few things, mainly weaving related, with some knitting too. I finished the Regia cotton socks I started in January, mainly stocking stitch with a little purl patterning. 2.5mm needles, 64sts.

This is my TopsyTurvy Moebius (Ravelry link) finished complete with I-cord bind off. I did 3 pattern repeats and I've worn it outside a couple of times under my coat. It really kept my front warm!

I finally caved when confronted with the Snow Queen Shawl knitalong (Ravelry link) hosted by BadCat designs. I haven't knit any lace shawls for a while, and even though I don't get much use from them, I still like knitting them. The design as written uses a lot of nupps, but I'm using beads instead. Where the pattern has beads, I'm using different beads. They don't show up very well in this picture, but spreading it out properly isn't easy at the moment. The clear beads are 8/0 Crystal AB Matsuno seed beads, and the blue ones are Frosted light blue AB Matsuno seed beads. Click for bigger. I've reached row 7 of chart F so far.

Now for the weaving. Last time I had just got the loom warped for a twill sampler, using threadings etc from 'A Weaver's Book of 8 shaft Patterns' edited by Carol Strickler. The patterns are nos. 323 - 332. There are six different threadings and ten different tie up and treadling combinations. In my case read lever selections for tie up and treadling.

This is the top of the piece as woven. Notice the wider fabric where there were fewer long floats. The yarn is DMC Petra no.5 cotton sett at 17.5 epi. I'd started with 20 epi, but couldn't manage to get a balanced weave, so I resleyed after sampling. It was a useful learning experience and the thrill of all those patterns miraculously appearing was marvellous.

Since then, my hubby has designed and made a superb upgrade for my loom in the form of a sliding beater assembly, so that every beat is made at 90 degrees to the cloth, and also has the benefit of getting the reed very close to the castle to maximise the shed. It moves very easily, and is a major improvement. This is the warp currently on the loom. It's overshot on 4 shafts using 3/14 cotton for the warp and tabby weft at 20 epi, with more of the DMC Petra no.5 pearl cotton for the pattern weft. I've taken to keeping a mirror handy for checking the back side of the cloth, those pattern wefts have a habit of being a bit loopy sometimes.

Welcome 2010

I spent most of today playing with my new to me loom. I had a 4 shaft Varpapuu table loom for Christmas, and hubby and I have been building a new replacement castle with 8 shafts for it. I had tried it with a very small warp and it was working well, so I've wound a cotton warp for a twill sampler or gamp. Today was the day for getting it threaded and wound on. I had eventual success, although it took a while. I discovered two errors in threading and with the help of a string heddle, all is now well.

In progress...

Ready to go....

The black/multi scarves are off the Kromski which is now folded up and having a rest. One is still waiting for fringe twisting, although the other is now living with my sister in law.



Meg of the blog Unravelling has asked for pictures of looms as they are today. So, these are my two.
The Topsy Turvy moebius is done. It took a couple of evenings to work the I-cord cast off all around, and I'll get a picture once it's been washed and blocked. How do you block a moebius without putting creases in?
I also finished my Round ripple afghan which I began almost 2 years ago.



It ended up about 50" across the points. This is aran weight acrylic/wool blend yarn with a 6mm hook.

Slow

I'm still here, just not with much to show for my efforts lately. The adirondack socks have stalled. I finished one and started the second only to discover that they are not comfortable underfoot. The stitch used is elongated single crochet worked in the round and in a more springy yarn it might be fine, but the bamboo yarn I used is more firm and not squishy at all. So, I'll probably rip and use the yarn for something else.



The woven scarves are taking forever, although the end is in sight now which is just as well, since one of them is earmarked for a gift.

I started a sweater in green with a lacy pattern copied from one I knitted years ago from a Sandra magazine. The back is done, but the front is waiting for me to work out the neck shaping before I continue.

I started a Topsy Turvy Moebius scarf in a fluffy grey yarn (Stylecraft Pavlova) and I'm just about ready to start the second ball now.

I'm a good bit further on that this picture shows, but it shows the twist quite well.

Apart from a simple plain pair of socks which match colourwise within a few stitches, I think that's about it. Ooh, I forgot the hat I just cast on for my son, this is in very chunky yarn on 7mm needles, and I hope I've got the size right.

The most exciting news is that I'm getting a table loom for Christmas, well I actually have it now, but we are building a new castle for it with 8 shafts to replace the 4 it came with. Hopefully, I'll be up and running before long.

Finished objects

I finally got some pictures taken of two projects just completed. The Balletneck sweater from the book 'Crochet that fits' by Mary Jane Hall has turned out well, although I should probably have made the body a bit smaller and the sleeves a bit wider. Still, it fits pretty well overall, and I'm pleased with it.

This is the yoke which I altered from the pattern. As written, it was far too large and wouldn't stay on my shoulders, so I went down a hook size and decreased more drastically. I also worked more rounds to give more depth.

The other fo is a top down raglan cardigan. This is plain stocking stitch (5mm needles) and 2x2 ribbing (4.5mm needles for all ribbing except the sleeve cuffs which used 4mm). The yarn, Jojoland Rhythm, is made up of 4 plies, each one changing colour gradually along the length, so the permutations are nearly endless. I used nearly all of the 10 balls of yarn. Before I began, I wound all the balls on the wool winder just so I could see the colour variations along the length of each one. I spent ages trying to work out the sequence which would produce the least sudden change in colours when changing balls.

I still have to sew on the buttons, but it's blocked and dry, so I'll get them done later.

Busy

I've been quiet for a while because we've been doing some work around the house which needed doing. Home improvements and yarn don't really mix very well.

I wove a couple more teatowels using no.10 crochet cotton, one peach end in each hole and two white ends in each slot with the 12.5 dpi heddle. The left most one is plain weave with differing numbers of picks of the two colours. The one on the right is my favourite waffle type weave in broad stripes. They are a bit floppy, but will be useable I think.


Today I warped up with some acrylic 4 ply (Denis Brunton Magicolor) for a couple of scarves, maybe for gifts if they turn out okay. This is a colour changing yarn, with one ply being black the other more colourful. I'm using black for the weft. I'm using the 12.5dpi heddle and beating very gently for a balanced weave. A side effect of this warp is the faux twill effect of the spots of colour which appear to shift and move on the diagonal. It doesn't show up much in the picture, but is quite striking in reality.

I have finished the crocheted Balletneck sweater, but have no pictures yet. However, I do have one of my attempt at an Adirondack sock from the current Interweave Crochet mag (Fall '09).
The yarn is Wendy Happy, a bamboo yarn, and I'm using a 3.25mm hook.

My top down raglan cardigan is almost done, I've just started knitting the band and then I have to find buttons.