Valentine Knitting

February 7, 2017 MarthaLeave a comment

Of course, since we love all things about knitting,

we must honor Valentine’s Day with hand knit items!

We knitters just need another excuse to make hand knit gifts for ourselves or others!

Here is a bit of Valentine’s Day history, direct from Wikipedia:

According to legend, during his imprisonment, Saint Valentine healed the daughter of his jailer, Asterius, and before his execution, he wrote her a letter signed “Your Valentine” as a farewell.

The day first became associated with romantic love within the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century, when the tradition of courtly love flourished. In 18th-century England, it evolved into an occasion in which lovers expressed their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionary, and sending greeting cards (known as “valentines“).

In our culture, everything from cards for school children, roses, chocolates, diamonds, you name it, Valentine’s Day is another reason to offer gifts to the people we love, including friends and family. Why not try a couple of these knitted items to give to one of your favorite people?

I made these felted hearts into a garland. Why? Because it is FUN!

Pattern “Little Hearts” by Teresa Fox on Ravelry

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/little-hearts

If you need help getting started on double point needles, go to my YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPqEfpZbz0A&t=1s

I used an “EmbellishKnits” Machine to make a very long I-cord.

https://www.amazon.com/Caron-20293-Embellish-Knit-Machine-Kit/dp/B003W0AUQ4

I attached the hearts to the cord with fishing line to make a beautiful garland!

Next, think about a festive heart washcloth! This can be used in the kitchen, in the bath, and is a perfect gift for a new mom. Children of all ages will enjoy this fun way to get clean in the tub!

This is “Double Heart Dishcloth” by Angie Chervenak on Ravelry.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/double-heart-dishcloth

For a quick and easy last minute “I Love You” whip up one of

of these hearts, “Love You Forever” by Tanis Lavallée on Ravelry.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/love-you-forever

Don’t Forget, “Jolly Wee Elves” are too cute for Valentine’s Day!

https://www.churchmouseyarns.com/products/jolly-wee-elf-elemental-affects-version

And… Last but not least, my Tiny Hershey Kisses!

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tiny-hershey-kiss-ornament-2

However you choose to celebrate Valentine’s Day,

knitting a fun item like one of these is a celebration in itself!

LOVE,

Martha

Knitting Blog

Sewing Your Knits: Stockinette Stitch

February 3, 2017 Martha3 Comments

When I first began to knit sweaters in about 1987, I really had no idea how to properly seam them.

My first attempts at seaming were not great, but at least the garment could be worn! I knew that there must be a neater way to seam instead of overhand stitch or back stitch. I don’t recall having a book or resource that showed seaming properly.
After taking a knitting hiatus while my children were little, I wanted to knit sweaters again and was determined to learn how to finish my own work. The thought of giving over my precious hand knit garment for someone else to seam was not acceptable to me, and besides, I was afraid to be judged by my lack of skill! I took a finishing class at a conference in 2000 and learned just how easy seaming your knits is!
Unlike sewing with fabric, knitting is seamed from the outside of the work. It is not turned inside out for seaming.
The easiest of all seams in knitting is sewing two stockinette stitch pieces with mattress stitch. Stockinette stitch has the smooth knit fabric on the “public” or outside of the work and bumpy purl fabric on the “private” or inside of the work. This is produced by knitting one row and purling one row and repeating that sequence throughout.
At this point, I encourage you to get some yarn and needles and make a couple of practice pieces of stockinette. Cast on 10 stitches and work at least 20 rows of stockinette. Make two of the samples. Use thicker yarn and a large needle for these pieces so you can see what you are doing. Light colored yarn is easier to see than dark.
It is very important that you have the same number of rows in order to seam properly. Now, if you are off two rows, it probably is not that big of a deal to “fudge” a little bit and ease the extra couple of rows into the sewing. If you are off by several rows, however, your seam may “seem” a bit wonky. (Sorry, I just had to.) You may want to consider removing or adding some rows of knitting if this is the case. (Ah, c’mon, you still like to knit, right?)

Counting rows in stockinette is not as difficult as you might think.

After you have counted your rows to make sure you have the same number on each piece, you are ready to begin the set up for seaming.

This set up is known as a figure 8.

Believe it or not, (smile) some knitters have very strong opinions about whether to use the yarn tail or a new piece of yarn to sew the seam. Here are a couple of thoughts.
If you use the tail of yarn that is attached from the cast on, you must have a piece about one and a half times the seam length. A 10” seam would require about 15” of yarn to sew. If you use the tail, the yarn does not start from the exact place for beginning the figure 8. You must plan ahead and leave extra yarn at all of the cast on and bound off areas. This method leaves one less end to weave in at the beginning of the seam, so if you are concerned about extra bulk, use this method.
You may also use a new piece of yarn cut to about one and a half times the length of the seam to sew. This method places the yarn in the exact spot for the figure 8 beginning. If you use an extra length of yarn, you have another tail to weave in. The goal is to make the beginning of the seam look good, right? Choose the method you like the best. I use them both.

When you begin to seam, you must identify the edge stitch and the column next to it. In a straight stockinette seam, you will not veer from this column. You may choose to seam one row or two at a time. Work a few rows without pulling the yarn to make it easier to see what you are doing. After a few rows, pull the yarn firmly to bring the seam together.

You CAN sew this seam!

Now you can see how wonderfully easy it is to seam stockinette stitch! I know you can do this if you practice on a sample a couple of times! Your garments will look terrific with perfect seams.

I will present more on seaming different stitch patterns and areas of garments in future blogs!

KnitYourselfHappy and Sew Your Knits!

Knitting Blog

Knitting for Charity

January 23, 2017September 19, 2017 Martha2 Comments

Giving your time, talent and treasure to charity in any form is a good thing. Knitting is a wonderful way to give in all three of these ways. We give our time by spending hours knitting or crocheting a hat, blanket or other items. We give our talent by using our hands to create beautiful items to share. We give our treasure by using our money to purchase supplies for our donation. Not only does it benefit the charity itself, our own personal lives are enhanced by giving.

Why is it important that we donate to charity? Here are just 5 good reasons, from http://philomenafamily.org/?page_id=762

Help other people –there are millions of people in the world who are worse off than we are at any time. Many of these folks have problems that are not their fault or are beyond their ability to prevent or change. Humans are a social animal and the best way for mankind to advance is by helping those who are unable to help themselves. We have a responsibility to care for other people, to help those less fortunate than ourselves. When we have some spare cash, time or goods, it is an opportunity to help out.
Make a difference –donating to charity is the perfect opportunity to make a difference in the world. By making a difference to someone’s life, you are leaving behind a legacy. You are making a statement that your life was worthwhile because you made a contribution to society.
Feel good –medical and scientific research has proven beyond doubt that giving to other people makes you feel good. The feeling of satisfaction you get when you help someone else is hard to replicate with any other type of activity or endeavor. People who give feel happier, are less anxious and suffer less depression than those who don’t. Better health is enjoyed by those who donate their time, expertise or money to others who are in need. Charitable people tend to be able to cope with their own problems more easily than those who don’t donate. Giving to others improves your self-esteem, self confidence and self worth. This advantage flows into all areas of your life so you will find that you are more confident at work and in social situations.
Support a cause you believe in –different charities touch different people. If you are passionate about something or believe that a certain area is important, you will be able to support that cause by donating to charity. Whatever you believe in or are passionate about, you will be able to further the cause through donations to charity.
Meet new people –donations to charity give you the opportunity to meet new people and expand your circle of acquaintances. This is especially true when you donate your time or expertise to a worthy cause. While most charitable organizations always need money, many could not operate without an army of volunteers. As well as meeting potential friends, who knows where these new relationships will take you and how these new people might be able to help you in the future?

Knitting for charity is not new, but if you have never considered it before, try it this year. Instead of thinking that you have to knit many articles for many causes, you can always start small.

Here are a couple of ideas for charity knitting.

One charity you may consider donating to is Knitted Knockers. This charity accepts knit or crochet breast prosthesis for women who have undergone a mastectomy. Founder Barbara Demorest started this charity in 2011 when she herself was diagnosed with breast cancer and needed to find a soft comfortable prosthesis to wear to work while her stitches healed. The patterns are free and there are videos to help you along the way. I have made several of these and they are really fun to make. Find details about Knitted Knockers here: https://www.knittedknockers.org/

The Mother Bear Project is a charity that contributes knitted and crocheted bears to children in countries severely affected by aids. Some of the children are too poor to have a toy of their own, and this charity seeks to give a bear to a child in need. The patterns are $5 and contributors are encouraged to add special touches to their bears. Every donation receives a personal thank you note. Please learn more about Mother Bear Project: http://motherbearproject.org/index.php

For a list of groups that knit these bears socially, see: http://motherbearproject.org/knitting_groups.php

These are just a couple of examples of the vast number of charities for receiving knitted and crocheted items. Please feel free to add your favorite knit and crochet charity in the “comments” section below.

Knitting Blog

Provisional Cast On: What, How and Why

January 10, 2017 Martha5 Comments

A provisional cast on is a cast on that is meant to be removed later. According to Merriam-Webster, the adjective provisional means: “existing or accepted for the present time but likely to be changed”. This is the perfect definition for this cast on.

This type of cast on is used if you are going to work a border after completing the knitting, or you want to graft the beginning and end of the piece together.

Picture this: You want to make a sweater from the bottom up with a fancy lace border along the hem. You can’t decide which fancy lace border among the hundreds of possibilities, but your fingers are itching to start that soft ocean- blue sweater. Use a provisional cast on and fly away knitting on the body of the sweater, knowing with joy and glee that you can very easily add a lace border at the hem later without a seam or having to pick up stitches from the cast on edge.

Another scenario: You are making a scarf that may want to become a cowl. You can ask your scarf this while you knit: “Dear scarf, would you rather be a cowl?” Instead of seaming the beginning and end of the scarf, use a provisional cast on and either graft the live stitches at the beginning and end, or do a three needle bind off with those live stitches. Grafting, (also known as Kitchener stitch) makes a virtually invisible join, and the three needle bind off makes a nice, smooth non-bulky seam. If your scarf says near the end of completion, “No, dear knitter, I don’t want to be a cowl”, then you can place the provisional cast on onto a knitting needle and bind off from there. (Isn’t it fun to converse with your knitting?)

But wait… There’s MORE!

For those of you who are extra fussy about your knitted bind off looking different than your cast on, you can use a provisional cast on at the beginning of your project as it looks almost identical to a knitted bind off! Who knew? (Of course you have enough sense to use the working yarn, not waste yarn, and if you are being particularly correct today, we wouldn’t call this a “provisional” cast on now, would we? But I digress.)

There are a few different ways to make a provisional cast on. My favorite way is to crochet a chain around the knitting needle. Use a smooth yarn in a contrasting color to produce the provisional cast on. This is known as “waste yarn”. (Is there really such a thing as waste yarn?) When you have cast on the required number of stitches, cut the waste yarn and place a couple of knots at the end of it. This will tell you at which end you will eventually remove the stitches from. “Why?” you might ask, you clever knitter! Because the crocheted chain will only release from one end and not the other. Think of an old fashioned bag of flour with a string closure across the top. It only releases from one end to get that satisfying unzipping of the bag. Otherwise, you pick and cut and waste half a day trying to get that silly bag of flour open!

When your pattern calls for any special combination of stitches, such as ribbing, increasing, decreasing, lace, etc, you will always work a plain row before you commence the pattern. (Commence. Good word.) Work one row of knit or one row of purl before beginning a pattern. If you work in ribbing, or any combination of knits and purls directly from the provisional cast on, the stitches will not unzip, and you will spend half a day undoing the provisional cast on. Ok, maybe not half a day, but it is a real drag. Working a decrease or increase is also not recommended from the waste yarn as those will also unduly involve the provisionally cast on stitches.

When removing a provisional cast on to place it back onto the knitting needle, you will have one fewer stitch than you cast on. What? Ok, ok, I will explain. If you think of your knitting when it is right side up, the stitches look like a series of: VVVVVVVVV’s. It is not a series of VVVVVVV’s with an extra slash at the end \. When you turn the work to start the additional border or bind off, you are looking at the stitches upside down. Now it is a series of /\/\/\/\’s without a complete /\ on each end, merely a half stitch \ or / and you must work one of those half stitches to equal the cast on number. Those half stitches will not drop anywhere, so if it is not important for your stitch number, you don’t need to pick up that half stitch. Ok, you had to ask didn’t you? You really didn’t want to know all that, did you?

Once you have the provisional cast on removed to a working needle, you can knit in the other direction, or graft the two live ends together. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE7lPJlwlt0

You can also join the two ends with a three needle bind off.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t56IsgCCG4o&t=13s

So, as you can see, a provisional cast on is pretty easy to do. It really is a good knitting skill to have. Try it on your next project or swatch!

Knitting Blog

Knitting Goals 2017

January 3, 2017 Martha13 Comments

What are your knitting goals for this year?

Let us look at some of the possibilities.

First and foremost, organize just one aspect of your knitting life. This doesn’t mean you have to go hog wild and add an extra room onto your house for all of your yarn. (Although aside from the work actually disrupting your life, that would be a cool thing to have, wouldn’t it?)

Let us take a couple of examples that are truly useful for your knitting time and energy.

Yes, you have needles. Galore. More than you could ever use. But you love them all. I get it. If you have any broken needles, forget fixing them. Throw them out. If you have old needles you know you will never use, donate them. At the very least, take your old needles, place them far far away from your knitting supplies and see if you use them this year. Make sure your circular needles are easy to access by placing like sizes and lengths into quart size zipper bags and LABEL them. Then put them in order by size in some sort of pouch. This can be as simple as a larger zippered bag, an empty bag from new pillowcases, or a freebie makeup pouch.

If you have a lot of double point needles, invest in a pouch or make one like I did:

I found this pattern for a double point needle case in Stitch and Bitch by Debbie Stoller.

https://www.amazon.com/Stitch-n-Bitch-Knitters-Handbook/dp/0761128182

I labeled the pockets with paper sticky labels. They didn’t stick by themselves, so I used some craft glue to hold them to the fabric. If I need to change a label, they can easily be peeled off and replaced. Investing or making a double point needle case is important! Hiya Hiya has a cute one here.

The KEY to keeping your needles in order is to (obviously) put them away properly when you are done using them. Ok, I’ll admit that I don’t do this every time I am done using a needle, but I do go through my pouches at least a couple of times a month and put the needles in proper order. You can’t believe how much time this will save you when you go to start that next gauge swatch. (Notice I didn’t say “project”, mind you, I said “gauge swatch”! Imagine how much time you waste hunting for needles, finding a needle gauge tool, checking every needle over and over again in that (great big) bin of needles to locate the correct one. AAAArgh! It just makes me want to run around the block! (No it doesn’t, but it is really irritating!)

Another way to get organized is by sorting your yarn. Ooooh, this can be a scary one. Go back to sorting needles if this frightens you too much.

There are many ways to organize yarn. You may want to think like a yarn store. Never mind that you have enough yarn to open your own yarn store! Categorize yarn by weight or fiber, or even color. (I don’t categorize by color, I don’t have THAT much yarn, hee hee.)

I personally use more than one method. All of my felting yarn is in a bin together, arranged (sort of) by color.
This bin hides under the guest bed. If I need yarn for felting, I know where to go.

Another bin holds only sock and lace weight yarn. You can’t believe how much yarn you need to have to make Tiny Yarn Baskets and Jolly Wee Elves! Organizing those two categories alone for me is really all I would need to do.

But wait, there’s more. I have a bin that holds ongoing projects. Some of these have been “ongoing” for years, but that’s no matter. I have a bin with a section of superwash wool, cotton and cotton blends. I consider that my kiddie section for washability.

Now that you may have organized one of the above categories, it is time to consider your actual knitting goals for 2017. What would you like to learn as a knitter? What frustrates you most about knitting that you would like to overcome?

One of my goals for 2017 is to have blogs for all of these topics. Maybe the guide to your goal is one of these topics. Here are some possibilities.

Sewing your finished garment
Picking up stitches
Counting rows and stitches
Fair Isle
Blocking
Intarsia
Measuring a gauge swatch
Knitting for charity

There is something for everyone! Pick one or more and make it a priority for this year. I am looking forward to so many new topics!

If you would like to request a topic, place a comment at the end of an article. I really do read them!

The home page purposely shows only my latest six topics. Click on “Older Posts” to see all of my articles. You can search the site for anything by typing in the search bar. Make sure you are “subscribed” to my website. Scroll down to the bottom of any page, find the button that says “subscribe” and enter your email address. Also, click on the icons for Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to add your ideas, pictures and comments. If you click on the You Tube icon, it will take you directly to my You Tube channel, which has over 40 knitting instructional videos! Please take the time to subscribe to my You Tube channel! Thank you for having fun with me!

Can’t wait to get started! 2017! Hurray!

Featured · Knitting Blog

Knitting for Christmas

December 5, 2016December 6, 2016 Martha8 Comments

One of the pleasures of Christmas is creating items for the season. Whether you keep these knit items for yourself or give them to others, making them will surely bring a smile to your face.

One of the first Christmas knits that I am crazy about is the “Jolly Wee Elf” from Churchmouse Yarns and Teas.The pattern is available on Ravelry. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/jolly-wee-elf

Initially, I made a couple of these elves.

I added eyes and a nose with embroidery floss because I felt they
deserved a face. After a couple of them, I became slightly obsessed. I made more and more and posted the pictures to Ravelry.

Someone on Ravelry commented that they looked like an Elf Choir, and I had to oblige. I made tiny choir folders for each of them with the music for “Stille Nacht.”

The elves seemed to enjoy their German heritage and of course “Stille Nacht” by German composer Hans Xaver Gruber and lyricist Joseph Mohr in 1818 is the carol they would sing.

I applied a toothpick between the music and the black folder so the elves can “hold” their choir folders.

This bit of fussing over some knit elves wasn’t finished. Unless I placed them in a huge semicircle or lined them up, you couldn’t see all of them. What to do? Why, make them choir risers, of course! I hunted down a couple of empty boxes of the appropriate size and arranged them nicely. They are lacking a choir director right now, I will think of them more as a Madrigal group until I have knit a conductor out of dark charcoal grey sock yarn. See? I still have ongoing plans for them!

Next, we have an easy project for anyone. Do you have “extra” yarn that you would like to “use up”? Make loads of pom poms and attach them with floral pins to a conical green Styrofoam base. What could be more fun for a side table or mantel? Add a knit star at the top for extra flair.

The topper is “Stars” by Squibbly Bups on Ravelry.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/stars-16

Finally, a favorite pattern I have designed is the “Tiny Yarn Basket.”

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tiny-yarn-basket-2

This item is not limited to Christmas, but can be worked up any time you need a little fun item to knit. I have a crochet ornament on my Christmas tree like this that I have had for years and I have no idea where it came from. I looked for a pattern that I liked, but none of the easy knit patterns was for a round shaped basket. So… I made one up!

The basket can be used as an ornament, or a resting decorative piece. Give them to your friends or attach them to a gift.

All of these Christmas knits are fairly quick and look just too sweet for words. I hope you like these as much as I do!

This video will help you see how to pick up stitches around the base of the Tiny Yarn Basket.