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Archive for the ‘magic loop’ Category

Brooklyn Tweed’s Men’s Striped Hat

April 14, 2011

It’s a little busy around here today. I’ve got workmen in my house, going in and out constantly, because we’re remodeling a couple of bathrooms. I’m also setting up for a cooking lesson I’m giving tonight, where I’m going to teach how to make fresh pasta with a roasted pepper sauce.

But I have to get in a little knitting, somewhere, right? I’m continuing work on this little project, which I’ll write about later:

But I do have an FO to show you. Continuing on with my Christmas knitting, I’ve just finished this men’s hat from Brooklyn Tweed – a Jared Flood design. It’s a very simple hat and a quick knit. You use two yarns, a solid and a self striping yarn and alternate them. The hat can look so different, depending on the striping yarn you use.

I think the four decreases at the top are interesting.

I knit this using the Magic Loop method. The Shibui striping yarn was pooling as I was knitting it and I didn’t want every stripe to look the same. So every couple of rows, I would cut it and the next stripe I would begin striping it from the other end of the yarn ball.

Pattern: Turn a Square from Brooklyn Tweed
Yarn: Shibui Merino Worsted in Sand #51304 and
Cascade 220 Superwash in Walnut
Needle: US #6 and #7, Circular
Ravelry Page

Posted in finished objects, gifts, guy stuff, knitting, magic loop | 2 Comments »

Andalus Mittens

April 11, 2011

Spring has sprung but I am busy at work on my Big Project – knitting something for everyone in my family by next Christmas (that’s about 15 people). I love two stranded colorwork and when I saw these Andalus Mittens, I knew I would be knitting them. I am knitting these for my mother-in-law because she really likes mittens.

These are knitted up in Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine, one of my favorite yarns. I selected the colors that I know my MIL likes to wear – copper and black. The copper color is called “Tiger’s Eye” and it has some interesting flecks in it.

I wanted to add some green to the mittens, but instead of knitting in little stitches, I used Duplicate Stitch to add the green after the mittens were knitted. I blogged about that technique here.

I knitted the lining for these mittens in Rowan Kidsilk Haze, color “Fern”. You can see how the lining is knit by picking up the stitches along the inside of the cuff :

Pattern: Andalus Mittens
Needle: US #2
Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine (Black, Tiger’s Eye, Pea Soup)
Lining: Rowan Kidsilk Haze (Fern)
Ravelry Page

I’ve seen so many beautiful new fun knits on the web lately and I wanted to share a couple with you. Have you seen Jared Flood’s new shawl, Rock Island? Knitters are all talking about it because it is so exquisite. He teamed up with Lorna’s Laces and they made a new colorway, Grand Street Ink, according to his specifications for this shawl. Check out the KAL over at Ravelry that’s been started for it. I wish I could do it, but I’ve got all these Christmas gifts I want to knock out.

Look at these beautiful mittens for spring, designed by Kirsten of “Through the Loops”. I fell in love with them the minute I saw them and immediately put them in my favorites on Ravelry.

Posted in finished objects, gifts, knitting, magic loop, mittens | 3 Comments »

Two Socks on One Circ

April 8, 2011

I hate having UFOs lying around. I really am pretty good at not starting too many new projects before other things are finished. I like having one mindless knitting project and one more focused, chart intensive kind of thing going at the same time so I can pick which to work on. So I don’t like having a third thing lying around, which is what these socks were. These socks were from a class I took a few months ago where we learned to do two socks on one circular needle, a technique I wanted to learn and immediately knew I disliked. As much as I love Magic Loop, I don’t like doing two items at one time – too much fiddling with the cables.

But the class did force me to learn to make socks, which I had never done, mostly because I just don’t wear socks. I go from sandals in the summer to my UGG boots in the winter, with no socks. But knitting my own socks may change my mind! Plus I wanted to start making socks for gifts – I do know that other people enjoy socks.

The instructor taught us how to make socks without using a pattern, which was a great lesson. These are toe-up socks, with an afterthought heel. We got to pick which kind of heel we wanted to do (I did a wedge) and which kind of bind off we wanted to do (I did a double crochet bind off).

picking up stitches for the afterthought heel

The afterthought heel was easy for me, because I’ve done so many afterthought thumbs with my mitten knitting.

picking out the waste yarn

grafting the heel with kitchener stitch

double crochet bind off

I like these socks a lot, although I made them a little too large for my feet. When you aren’t working from a pattern, you just have to go by feel. I forget to take into consideration that the socks would grow a little when I blocked them.

Pattern: None!
Yarn: Abundant Yarn & Dyeworks 100% Merino Wool
Needles: US#1 Circulars
Ravelry Page

Posted in finished objects, knitting, magic loop, socks/footwear | 3 Comments »

More Magic Loop

March 30, 2011

Work continues on the Andalus Mittens for my MIL. I had frogged the first lining, the Brushed Suri, because it was too thick and bought some Rowan Kidsilk Haze, which is working out great. I love the apple green color. I’m not holding it double, and it’s working out to be a fine lining.