Soooo close to being finished with my huge jacket project. OMG. I cannot wait to wear this thing. It is the biggest thing I have ever knit. I started it over a year ago!
Seriously. I plan on making mittens once my yarn store gets they alpaca in stock. I look forward to wearing them next winter.
Soooo close to being finished with my huge jacket project. OMG. I cannot wait to wear this thing. It is the biggest thing I have ever knit. I started it over a year ago!
Can't wait to see it. I don't know when/if ever I will work on sweaters. I'm also waiting for some Malabrigo to come in so I can make my mom a new shawl.
Right now I'm working on a commissioned Scott Pilgrim hat and using Berroco Merino Superwash DK. I love how the yarn smooshes.
I've got all the knitting done on my TARDIS so there's just blocking, seaming and stuffing left to be done. I should have be done and have pics by the weekend.
Not sure how much stuffing I want to put in it or whether or not I want to keep the foamy bits in the sides.
EDIT: Side project scarf has reached seven feet, enough yarn left for at least one more and the pattern says there's a ~144% increase in length after blocking. That's roughly ten feet long if I stop now. Is there such a thing as too much scarf?
Holy crap that's a lot larger than I thought it was going to be.
The Ravelry people said it would be big, but the smallest needles Walmart had were 5's and I didn't feel like looking elsewhere. It'll be about 16 inches tall once I put the top on.
I've seen a 12ft long Long Cat Scarf.
Long Cat makes sense, 4th Doctor's scarf makes sense, but this is what I'm making and I'm not sure if that's too much.
I wonder what it would take to make an automatic knitting machine? This bears study...
EDIT: it seems such things already exist.
Yes, otherwise all those store-bough knitted sweaters would have been hella more expensive.
Interesting factoid: While knitting has been successfully automated, no one has ever developed a machine that can crochet. That's why you rarely see crochet garments in stores. Also because knitting is cooler.
Still, I wonder what it would take to make one that could knit, say, a whole sweater in one go. Maybe an Arduino and a few servos? No, it'd have to be more than just a few. We'd need three dimensional movement for each needle. So that would be six servos at least. And some stepper motors too...
Most sweaters are knit in 4 or 5 pieces - front, back, 2 sleeves, and the collar. Then they are seamed together. It's probably very difficult to do a body and sleeves in one go.
So I'm planning on doing projects that will more than likely require blocking. I'm thinking about getting the blocking foam board set from KnitPicks. Which pins should I get? The T pins or normal blocking pins?
Since I also plan on making socks very soon, should I get the sock shaped blocker as well?
I say T pins, they worked fine for blocking the TARDIS, but I've got no experience with the loopy ones. I'm going to get me some of those blocking puzzles too for when I have to block my scarf, the foam sheet worked alright, but I know those would be better.
So I'm planning on doing projects that will more than likely require blocking. I'm thinking about getting the blocking foam board set from KnitPicks. Which pins should I get?The T pinsornormal blocking pins?
Since I also plan on making socks very soon, should I get the sock shaped blocker as well?
The blocking pins have the advantage of having 2 prongs, so you can pin in 2 places with one pin. They are a bit thinner and shorter than the T-pins, though. I have both. I use the T-pins to pin out my blocking wires and the blocking pins to pin directly into the fabric. You can also use plain sewing/quilting pins; they work just fine if you have enough and angle them properly.
If you are going for straight edges, I highly recommend investing in a set of KP blocking wires. They are awesomesauce times a million.
I have mixed feelings about the KP sock blockers. On one hand, they work. On the other hand, they are clearly just cut out of foamcore, and the edges aren't really very smooth. I mean, they don't snag egregiously, but I do worry about the roughness against the wet fabric encouraging pills. Wool is more delicate when it's wet. If you're on a tight budget, the KP blockers work fine. Otherwise a set of nice, finished wood ones is preferable. (I still use the KPs because, well, I'm poor. I also don't often block my socks.) Make sure you get your size though; socks need to fit. Honestly, you really don't need to block your socks unless you want to because they are worn tight.
Sweet. Thanks for the advice. I ordered the blocking mat, blocking wires, t pins, blocking pins, and more cable wires. Free shipping!
I plan on making a shawl very soon that will probably need blocking. Ok, I should be ok with knitting supplies, for now. >____>
I really don't like how the cable end caps are perpendicular to the cables. The circular part should be flat and parallel so it can easily fit in the case if it's attached to the ends.
I was going to buy some yarn from KnitPicks, but there was no submit button on the checkout page. It's plainly there in the page source, just didn't get displayed to the page.
I was going to buy some yarn from KnitPicks, but there was no submit button on the checkout page. It's plainly there in the page source, just didn't get displayed to the page.
No local stores that carry fancy yarn near you? I have yet to order yarn from them, but I sometimes glance through the catalog and look at the pretty colors.
What type of yarn are you buying? I'm looking forward to some merino/cashmere/nylon action very soon.
No local stores that had red fingering weight yarn. I'm getting me some of this to be used for a Doctor Who cosplay scarf. Friend of mine wants to get her Amy Pond on and I'm happy to help with that.
100% Peruvian Highland Wool. Nice. I have some of that from Cascade Eco brand in bulky weight. At first it felt kinda rough, but it's decent to knit with and really good to felt with as well.
I really like the Eco Wool. It's soft enough for next-to-skin stuff, IMO. The jacket I just finished knitting is made from that. I still have to weave in end, sew on buttons, and do some light blocking before photos.
I just ordered an assload of spinning fiber to dye & put up on Etsy. Let's hope that works out well enough that I at least recoup the cost of materials!
I really like the Eco Wool. It's soft enough for next-to-skin stuff, IMO.
I'm knitting with some right now. At first appearance it seemed rough, but as the project continues it feels nice.
Right now I'm working on a project from a previous one, but different weight yarn and different needles. I had to regauge everything and figure out the modifications for the pattern. It's a pretty simple pattern, but trying to figure out the modifications got me confused a bit at times.
The Russian Bind Off and Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off are both good options for something that you need to stretch; they are often used for the top of sock cuffs. On a scarf I generally just do a regular crochet bind off loosely, unless it is lace. For lace, the Russian often works well with blocking.
Comments
Right now I'm working on a commissioned Scott Pilgrim hat and using Berroco Merino Superwash DK. I love how the yarn smooshes.
Not sure how much stuffing I want to put in it or whether or not I want to keep the foamy bits in the sides.
EDIT: Side project scarf has reached seven feet, enough yarn left for at least one more and the pattern says there's a ~144% increase in length after blocking. That's roughly ten feet long if I stop now. Is there such a thing as too much scarf?
I've seen a 12ft long Long Cat Scarf.
EDIT: it seems such things already exist.
Interesting factoid: While knitting has been successfully automated, no one has ever developed a machine that can crochet. That's why you rarely see crochet garments in stores. Also because knitting is cooler.
Since I also plan on making socks very soon, should I get the sock shaped blocker as well?
If you are going for straight edges, I highly recommend investing in a set of KP blocking wires. They are awesomesauce times a million.
I have mixed feelings about the KP sock blockers. On one hand, they work. On the other hand, they are clearly just cut out of foamcore, and the edges aren't really very smooth. I mean, they don't snag egregiously, but I do worry about the roughness against the wet fabric encouraging pills. Wool is more delicate when it's wet. If you're on a tight budget, the KP blockers work fine. Otherwise a set of nice, finished wood ones is preferable. (I still use the KPs because, well, I'm poor. I also don't often block my socks.) Make sure you get your size though; socks need to fit. Honestly, you really don't need to block your socks unless you want to because they are worn tight.
I plan on making a shawl very soon that will probably need blocking. Ok, I should be ok with knitting supplies, for now. >____>
I really don't like how the cable end caps are perpendicular to the cables. The circular part should be flat and parallel so it can easily fit in the case if it's attached to the ends.
Nevermind, this only happened in Chrome, weird.
What type of yarn are you buying? I'm looking forward to some merino/cashmere/nylon action very soon.
I just ordered an assload of spinning fiber to dye & put up on Etsy. Let's hope that works out well enough that I at least recoup the cost of materials!
Right now I'm working on a project from a previous one, but different weight yarn and different needles. I had to regauge everything and figure out the modifications for the pattern. It's a pretty simple pattern, but trying to figure out the modifications got me confused a bit at times.