Recently in original designs Category

The book Knitting Socks with Handpainted Yarn is finally out!

I say finally although it really didn't take long at all -- it was rather a whirlwind by publishing standards. Carol contacted me in January to ask if I'd be interested in submitting a design. I submitted by early February, heard back at the end of February, got the yarn and knit them by the end of March. Then Interweave photographed, tech edited, and produced the book in a few months all so it could be out before Christmas.

The first few chapters of the book are worth its price alone. Carol guides us through a variety of topics on handpainted sock yarn - fibers, types of dyeing, why pooling occurs, what you can do to remedy it, and how to pick a pattern to suit your type of yarn.

There are 21 patterns in the book, both by the big names you'll recognize (Nancy Bush, Ann Budd, Priscilla Gibson Roberts) and some newer folks too. The patterns are broken out by the type of yarn that best suits them -- nearly solid, muted multi, and wild multi -- giving the reader some guidance in selecting a pattern that's appropriate for the yarn.

You'll find a pretty big variety in techniques used here to work with and combat some of the challenges of working with handpainteds -- eyelets, wrapped stitches, varying stitch counts, two-color knitting, intarsia, beads and embroidered embellishments, and even a sock that uses up leftovers in a beautiful way.

When I was working on my sock for the book, I probably sketched and swatched at least 20 different samples. I settled pretty early on the fact that I wanted to use extra-long rows as my method of working with the issue of pooling. I learned a while back that long rows work nicely with a lot of handpainted yarns, but I wanted to come up with a different way to make the long rows -- in this case, really deep chevrons.

The sock took a bunch of swatching before I got it right, and of course I knit more than I took notes, so after I came up with the right approach I had to do that fun thing where I tried to pull apart the stitches to try and figure out what I did (in the software world we call that "reverse-engineering" which sounds so much better than "damnit...what the heck did I do there?")

Lucky for me I was able to figure it out (good thing since at that point Interweave had accepted my design)


The pattern that I came up with follows an unusual construction that had a couple benefits I never could have predicted.

1. It starts out with some ribbing at the top.
2. Then, short rows are worked to setup the chevrons. Pythagoras would be very happy with these socks, because the short rows take into account that a knit stitch is wider than it is tall. In other words, the triangle lays pretty straight across at the top.
3. The chevron is worked all the way down the heel (you can see a good pic of this at the top of the post) and creates a roomy short row heel. See how the sock curves out at the back of the heel? While I'd love to take credit for it, it was truly one of those happy mistakes.
4. Next, the bottom half of the short row heel and gusset is worked, and chevrons are worked down the leg.
5. For the toe, some shaping is worked to give the toe a curved shape while keeping the chevron pattern.
6. And finally, the bottom of the toe is worked back and forth to complete the sock.

I felt some relief when I started knitting with the yarn and saw how the colors were striping. Phew! This is working! The yarn was really great to work with -- Fiesta Yarns Baby Boom in Mochachino. That first sock took quite a bit of ripping and reworking and I didn't have to toss out any of it. Possible Mods

• I had quite a bit of yarn left over from the 2 balls I used so you could make the leg longer and still have enough.
• The stated gauge is 7 sts per inch, but the pattern is offered in 2 sizes -- 7.5" and 8.25" circumference. If you want to work the sock at a 8 sts per inch you could follow the larger size and get a sock that's approx 7.25" around.
• If you have wider calves and want to make the leg wider than the foot, start by following the directions for the larger size, and once you've worked the heel, work additional "Shape Gussets" rounds to reduce the stitch count down to the smaller size.

Now that the book is out I've started to make myself a pair out of some Tess Yarn I bought just for these socks. I'm using the larger size's numbers at the smaller gauge (Tess yarn works up really nicely at 8 sts per inch). I've only done the cuff and I can't wait to see what the chevrons look like.

If you make a pair, please let me know. And if you have any questions or problems, leave a comment and I'll get back to you.

I've wanted to make a rectangular lace wrap for a while now. Last winter I really needed one for a holiday party but I decided too late. This year, I want one (or a few) so I won't get stuck in the same predicament.

I swatched all weekend and finally came up with what you see above. I love the zig zag bottom border, but I'm undecided about the hearts. I think they're a little dense and maybe lack interest? I'm considering making some of the stitches move outward in the heart, or maybe some extra eyelets inside it to make it more airy.

The inner part (which will be most of the wrap) will be lacier. I might knit a couple repeats before I decide.

What do you think? Don't hold back -- I want real opinions. You all know how much time it takes to knit something like this -- so tell me what you really think.

First off, a big thank you to everyone who commented on my garden! I can't tell you how exciting and motivational it was to get all those comments. I saw all the things I still hadn't done -- and you all showed me all the things I *had* done. Thank you!

So, today is the last day of my vaca. It's been a long week. I'll return to work satisfied with the progress I made in the garden, and well-rested (I "slept in" until almost 7am every day this week -- that's late for me). This morning I woke up to birds chirping so loudly that at first I thought I left the TV on -- it felt like they were right in the bedroom.

I didn't get to make my barbecue or the sangria on Friday, but you can bet I'll be doing it today. It's supposed to be sunny with a high of 70°F (21°C). I couldn't have created a nicer day for my last day of vaca.

It's been a while since I've talked about this design. I've knitted on it quite a bit since I showed you the last pics.

The fit is really good (I'll show you once it gets a little longer) and I love how the stitch pattern waves a bit.

I changed the original stitch pattern I chose for the bottom half. It just wasn't working for me -- it felt a little matronly. I decided it needed something with straight lines rather than waves. Here's a closeup.

I washed and dried the swatch I knitted it to get final measurements. The angora fluffed up a lot and it shrunk a bit in length. Curiosity got the best of me last night and I had to see what happened with the top. It did just what I expected (phew!) and shrunk about 2.5 inches. The softness is incredible -- even softer and squishier than the small swatch.

I want the top to be a little more feminine than it is now, so I'm considering a short, flaired sleeve for a little frill, and maybe a tiny ruffle around the bottom and the neckline.