Simple Striped Cowl Pattern

 

This is a quick-to-knit cowl that has no complicated stitches (only knit and purl stitches) and is great way to use up leftover yarns. I came up with this design during pandemic isolation when I had trouble focusing on complex patterns. It's a project that didn't require too much concentration while giving me the comfort of having a project on the needles.

Link to Pattern

2019 NC State Fair

I'm working on the 7 pieces that I've entered into this year's NC State Fair. I'll have photos and more details after the judging. Here's the status of the projects:

-- Hand-knitted baby sweater: just needs buttons sewn on

-- Crocheted shawl: finished and blocked, just needs yarn tails sewn in

-- Crocheted edging on tea towel: about half finished

-- Crocheted table runner: about half finished...it's filet crochet so will need some strong blocking to get the open areas to square up

-- Tatted edging on pillowcase: needs to be attached to the pillowcase...sometimes that takes about a long as the tatting

-- Framed tatted piece: just barely started

-- Holiday card with tatting: haven't even decided on the design...if I bail on any project, it will probably be this one

October 10 is the first day to submit the pieces so I'm optimistic that I have enough time left to finish everything.

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Sept. 26 Update: I finished the crochet table runner and it's being blocked now. Next up is attaching the tatting to the pillowcase, So far 3 out of 7 entries finished.

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Oct. 2 Update: 3 pieces finished & tagged: crocheted shawl, knitted baby sweater, crocheted table runner. 3 pieces in final stages: pillowcase edging still being attached to pillow (boy, sewing these edgings on takes forever!), tea towel motifs finished & need to be attached to the towel, tatted piece for greeting card finished & needs to be blocked before assembling onto card stock. Still need to decide what I'm going to make for the framed tatting entry.

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Oct. 3 Update: Finished the crocheted edging on a tea towel. The combination of the motifs in the edging made the final work my own design. One of the goals I have in doing these Fair projects is to challenge myself in some way. This piece required attaching small parts to the main crocheted edging. I tried three different methods before I settled on one that looked the best while still joining all the parts securely.

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Oct 4 Update: Tatting motif for the framed entry is finished and being blocked. All that will be needed is to put it in the frame I already had in my stash.
Tatting for the holiday card entry is finished and blocked. All that is needed is to glue it onto card stock.
Still working on sewing the tatted edging onto the pillowcase. Boy, it is so tedious, but also so necessary. Then all that will be left is to resew the pillowcase hem to hide all the stitching.

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Oct 9 Update: Tatted edging finally sewn onto the pillowcase and the piece is washed, ironed, and ready for submission.
The holiday card created a problem...nothing to do with the tatting or assembling. The rules require that cards be protected in a clear envelope. I thought this would be something I could buy at Staples or in the card making area in A.C. Moore. No luck at either place. If I ever have an entry in this category, maybe I can find these envelopes online. But no time for that at this time. I found a sleeve of stickers on the clearance rack at A.C. Moore that was in packaging about the same size as the card stock I'm using. So I ended up pay a dollar or so for stickers I didn't need to get the packaging that I did need. Even then, I had to make some adjustments because the envelope was longer than I needed. Hate it when the competition rules require something that (1) has nothing to do with making the piece itself and (2) creates about as much work/aggravation as did making the entry piece.
Well, enough ranting. All 7 entries are finished and ready for the fair. Tomorrow is the first day to submit entries. It will be a relief to get everything out of the house so I can work on less stressful projects. Nonetheless, there are positive benefits for entering the competitions. I think it pushes me to work more on my crafting and problem-solving skills and try things that are a bit out of my comfort zone. I learn new things each year when I work on these entries.

Shawls in balls

Recently, Lion Brand Yarns ran a sale on their Shawl in a Ball yarns. Normally, they're about $10 per ball, but the sale was 5 balls for $10 + shipping cost. Not that I needed more yarn, but it was a sale I could not resist. Rather than just add the yarn to my stash, I decided I needed the knitting motivation that comes when I have a specific recipient in mind. I asked my sister, daughter, sister-in-law, and niece to choose one of the balls I'd bought, and I would make them each a shawl. So far, I've finished 2 of the 4 shawls. Please note that I haven't washed and blocked them yet so they are more scrunched up than they will be when they are given out.

My Sister's Shawl

The colorway is "Reflective Crystal." The pattern, "Sedona Triangle Shawl", is a free pattern from Lion Brand specifically designed for the Shawl in a Ball yarns. It's an easy pattern made up of  alternating rows of stockinette and garter stitches. Below is a closeup.

My Daughter's Shawl

My daughter wanted a rectangular wrap with greens and browns. The colorway she chose is "Graceful Green." Sorry, but the photo does not do it justice. The free pattern is  "Nova Lace Pattern Wrap" from Tahki Yarns. It's knit lengthwise. I cast on fewer stitches than the pattern called for so I could have a bit more height than length in the final piece. It's a super-easy pattern with yarn-overs added on one row and dropped on the next to provide a lacy effect which will be more pronounced once I block the piece

Getting Ready for the 2019 NC State Fair

Registration deadline for entries to the North Carolina State Fair is coming up fast so I'm now working on several projects that, up to now, had just been vague ideas. So far, I'm finishing up (1) a knitted baby sweater, (2) a tatted edging for a pillowcase, and (3) a crocheted edging for a tea towel. I have ideas for a few other items but I will need to give them some more thought. I won't post photos of any pieces until they are actually entered in the fair in October. Stay tuned...

This Summer's Charity Knitting

Although I've been pretty inactive on the blog this summer, that doesn't mean I haven't been busy crafting. One of the projects I've been working on is making items to donate to the local charity Note in the Pocket. Their mission: "We provide clothing to impoverished and homeless schoolchildren in Wake County [NC] with dignity and love. Note in the Pocket believes that it is unacceptable that children are limited in their educational and social development because they do not have appropriate clothes for school.

This is the latest batch I've finished: 2 scarves and 34 hats. I've gone through so much of my stash of acrylic yarn that I've had to buy more to continue making the hats. The majority were knitted using a simple pattern that I modified from one I found in my library of knitting books. The pattern works up very fast so that I can make a hat in just a few hours of knitting.

Here's the pattern that I used for the majority of the hats:

Child's Simple Knitted Hat

Hat body
1.       Cast on 80 stitches on 16" circular needle.
2.       Join & place marker.
3.       Work K2 P2 rib for 8 rows.
4.       Continue in stockinette stitch for 28 rounds.
Crown Shaping Decreases
Change to double-pointed needles when there are too few stitches to fix on the circular needle.
1.       (K8, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
2.       K next round -- 72 stitches
3.       (K7, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
4.       K next round -- 64 stitches
5.       (K6, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
6.       K next round -- 56 stitches
7.       (K5, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
8.       K next round -- 48 stitches
9.       (K4, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
10.   K next round -- 40 stitches
11.   (K3, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
12.   K next round -- 32 stitches
13.   (K2, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
14.   K next round -- 24 stitches
15.   (K1, K2tog) -- repeat pattern to marker
16.   K next round -- 16 stitches
17.   K2tog 8 times -- 8 stitches

Cut yarn leaving 8" tail & thread through the remaining stitches.
Pull together tightly & secure end.
Weave in any loose ends.

Tatting Resources

I just compiled this list of links to resources for tatters for a tatter who I met on my recent trip to Scotland. Perhaps others who read this blog may find the information useful, too.

Craftree https://www.craftree.com/

Social media site for tatters. Lots of patterns, discussions, library. Free membership.

Facebook Groups

Local groups that I belong to:

·         Tri-Tatters https://www.facebook.com/groups/144185818933579/ -- the Triangle-area group of tatters. Monthly meetings in Raleigh. Membership is free.

·         NCRL - North Carolina Regional Lacers https://www.facebook.com/groups/128630100489278/

-- this group is out of Raleigh, but we have members from western part of Virginia and all over North Carolina. A lot of bobbin lace members, but we tatters are a growing in membership. Also supports other forms of lace making: knitted, crochet, needle lace. NCRL has a Spring Lace Day in Chapel Hill each year. Membership is $15/year, but membership is not required to attend the Lace Day vendor area.

Other tatting Facebook groups that I belong to:

·         Tatting https://www.facebook.com/groups/Tatting/

·         Tatting-Frivolite-Orecchini https://www.facebook.com/groups/1847513998806323/

·         Tatting lovers---amanti del chiacchierino! https://www.facebook.com/groups/150132498380216/

·         Frivoliteter är ett fantastiskt handarbete! https://www.facebook.com/groups/194594043486/

·         Lacemakers https://www.facebook.com/groups/30338026304/

·         Frivoliteras https://www.facebook.com/groups/439764586037740/

·         Tatting ayşemekik 2 https://www.facebook.com/groups/499720273533296/

·         Tatting Shuttle Addicts.... https://www.facebook.com/groups/tattingshuttleaddicts/

·         Just-Tatting https://www.facebook.com/groups/752452334871921/

·         Tatters of Lace https://www.facebook.com/groups/167073436674554/

The Palmetto Tatters Guild in South Carolina sponsors an annual Tat Days in Toccoa, Georgia in September. You can get info on the event on their website: http://www.palmettotatters.org/

Other groups that sponsor tatting conventions:

·         Finger Lakes Tatting Group in Hector, NY http://www.fingerlakestatting.com/

·         Shuttlebirds Tatting Guild in Spokane, WA https://www.shuttlebirds.com/

·         Fringe Element Tatters in Ontario, Canada https://www.fringetatters.ca/index.php

Sources of tatting threads, shuttles, books, and other supplies: 

·         Handy Hands https://www.hhtatting.com/

Online only

Quarterly newsletter for $5/year, subscription entitles you to discounts on purchases

·         Be-stitched http://tattingcentral.com/suppliers/be-stitched-store/

Online only

Free monthly newsletter with tatting pattern

          

·         Tatting Corner https://tattingcorner.com/

Online and physical store in Indiana

·         DS9Design https://ds9designs.com/

Online only

·         Snowgoose Lace https://www.snowgooselace.com/

Online only

I'm Baaak! And I've Been Very Busy

Although I have not posted anything on this blog since March, that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. I'm going to catch up with photos of all my recent projects so that I'll have the old projects recorded before I post photos of my 2018 North Carolina State Fair entries.

One of my crafty activities this summer was to take a 2-session class on brioche knitting. This technique has always intrigued and eluded me. After the first class with Rachel at Downtown Knits in Apex, NC, I saw why I needed professional instruction. When you skip or drop a stitch in brioche knitting, it is hellishly hard for a beginner to find and fix the mistake. Fortunately, Rachel made herself available between classes when she was staffing the store. I came and sat to work on the class project and if I had a problem, I would run to her between her taking care of customers.

Our class project was "Worsted Brioche Bandana Cowl" by Lavanya Patricella Designs available for purchase on Ravelry. The yarn in the photo below is not the yarn I purchased at the yarn shop for the class. I actually got so frustrated with the project that I made the cowl out of worsted that I had in my stash so I wouldn't wear out the more expensive yarn by constant frogging. The yarn I used for this cowl is Plymouth Encore Worsted in colorway 146 Natural and an Encore Worsted in colorway 1001 Merry, a twist of green and red.

As you can see, with brioche knitting you have a double-sided garment with each side reversing the dominant color of the other side.

Here's the cowl I finally made with the yarn I bought for the class. It's pretty much the same as the one above, but I omitted the bandana point on this one since I didn't personally care for it. The yarn is worsted weight wool, but I've no idea what it was since I've mislaid the skein label (I'll update the post if I ever figure it out).

 After I felt more competent with the technique, I made a scarf with Plymouth Encore worsted and various colors of yarn leftovers. The pattern is Nancy Marchant's "BEBEB (Best Ever Beautifully Edged Brioche) Scarf." The pattern is free and a good one for brioche beginners.

Also made this hat using Plymouth Encore worsted in colorway 146 Natural and Plymouth Encore Colorspun in colorway 8004 Rainbow. The free pattern is Marilynn Blacketer's "Brioche Basic Beanie."

Now that I've mastered the basics I hope to move on to more complicated patterns. To inspire me I recently purchased Knitting Fresh Brioche by Nancy Marchant which definitely takes the technique to a higher level of complexity. 

Happy Easter! Welcome Spring!

2018 Carolina Fiber Fest Stash Acquisitions

In addition to participating in the Tri-Tatters display/demo at this year's Carolina Fiber Fest in Raleigh, NC, I did a bit of shopping in the vendor area. I feel I was quite restrained this year with only 4 purchases.

Last year I almost bought a ball of this colorway ("Deep Sea"), but when I came back to the vendor's booth, the yarn was gone. This year, I saw that one ball was left on the rack so I snapped it up before I missed out a second year. The yarn is approximately 560 yards of superwash merino. I don't know what I'll make with it, but I love the colors too much not to add it to my stash.

I bought this skein at the Claudia Hand Painted Yarns booth. It's 270 yards of 100% sport-weight linen in a colorway called "Almost Pink." It's actually more of a fuschia shade. I was looking at the pale pinks on the rack when I spotted this dramatic color. "Oh, too flashy for me," I thought and walked on. Then later I returned and said to myself, "Go for it!" I wear a lot of black so this color would really stand out around my neck and shoulders. So far, the only thing I've made from linen is a shopping bag so I was concerned about how soft it would be as a garment. The vendor showed me that a skirt knitted out of the same fiber had softened up after washing so I think whatever I make with it will be comfortable to wear.

Here's another 100% linen purchase, this one from Ellyn Cooper's Yarn Sonnets. It's hand-dyed Normandy 16/2 linen (a number which will probably mean more to weavers, than knitters or crocheters). The 200 yards of lace weight yarn is in colorway "Sunset Blush" and the photograph does not do it justice. This thin yarn is about equivalent to size 20 tatting thread and is so smooth that I am planning to see how well it will tat. So far, I've only tried tatting with linen sewing thread, but this has tempted me to try something heavier.

This skein of sock-weight yarn is from Iria Yarn Company. Last year I bought yarn from their booth (and actually finished a project with it!). (Again, I was attracted to something, left without buying it, and then later returned and bought it. I think that if I find myself attracted to a yarn enough to consider it second time, then I probably should go ahead and buy it.) The yarn is called "Sparkle Sock" in colorway "Steel Gray." It's 436 yards of 75% superwash merino, 20% nylon, and 5% Stellina (the sparkly bits). I think it will make a nice little shawl...someday.

Was I tempted by other yarns at the event? Hell, yes! But sanity prevailed. Two passed-up possibilities come to mind. Both I judged were two expensive to possibly languish in my stash for years. I love the feel of silk and at last year's Fiber Fest there was almost no silk yarn to be had. This year there was a lot more, both blended with wool or other fibers or as 100% silk. The stuff I had my eyes and hands on was around $55 per skein in lace weight. Beautiful, but I resisted. Since I had no idea what to make with it, I think I was wise to pass it up.

Walking back to our tatting display area, I felt a lovely yarn in passing. Oh, my, it was soft and squishy. No wonder, it was angora yarn. I could imagine the luxurious feeling as my neck was wrapped in its soft fuzziness. But the price tag of $60 for one skein brought me back to my senses and I walked on.

If this event wasn't sufficient for yarny goodness, the local Spring Yarn Crawl starts in 2 weeks. This year 12 yarn shops will be participating. Not sure I can keep from going to at least 2 or 3 of them.

Off the Hook: Crocheted and Felted Cat Bag

I finished this little bag last night in the hopes that I would show it off at the Carolina Fiber Fest today. Last year at the event I demo'ed and displayed crocheted work on my own. I was approached by a local fiber group (of which I am a member) and asked to participate with the group this year. I assumed that what they wanted from me was the kind of display I was doing at that time. Silly me for making assumptions. 

Unfortunately, when I got to the venue, I found out that I would just be sitting in a circle with the group and crocheting while others were spinning and weaving. There was no table available to display any of the pieces I had assembled and brought. So I took my crochet and went home. Tomorrow should go better as I am the person in charge of the tatting group that will be demonstrating and displaying. I made sure to order extra tables and chairs so we can show off the beauty of knotted lace. Well, enough of how my day started off. Let me get to the info on this piece.

The crochet pattern is "Felted Black Cat Bag," a free one from Lion Brand Yarn. I made a few changes in my version of this cute bag. The pattern calls for Lion Brand Wool, but, as I often do, I turned to my stash for supplies. 

Somewhere in past years I acquired several vintage skeins of Hiawatha Real Needlepoint Wool (article 380, 40 yds. per skein) in dark brown. This wool isn't quite worsted weight so I used the strands from 2 skeins. The eyes and nose are crocheted in the pattern, but I decided that I would finish faster if I substituted buttons. I used 2 orange vintage glass buttons for the eyes and a red heart-shaped button for the nose. the mouth and whiskers are needlepoint wool from my stash.

The piece works up fairly fast as it is basically 2 circles (just one with the ears) and 2 long strips for handles. The felting took time since it can often be a trial-and-error project to get the wool fibers to shrink up enough. Usually, when felting a washing machine, we are told to put the items to be felted in a laundry bag and wash them along with other pieces of laundry. Something in that load shed white dots all over the dark brown wool so I spent some time with a lint roller to get all the spots off the bag. Guess next time I'll be more careful in selecting the things that get sloshed around along with a felting project. 

Although I didn't get a chance to show off the bag at the Fiber Fest, I might consider entering it in the next NC State Fair if I can find an appropriate entry category.

Crocheting in the Library

Today I displayed and demonstrated crocheting in the third "Meet the Artist" event held in Wake County regional libraries that I attended. This one was in the Southeast Regional Library in Garner, NC. The other participant (on my right, but not pictured) demonstrated spinning and tapestry weaving.

I'll be doing the same crochet presentation this Friday at the Carolina Fiber Fest in Raleigh, NC. Then on Saturday I'll be back at the event but this time with my tatting friends. And, of course, it goes without saying that I probably will be adding to my yarn stash at the event despite the fact that I still have yarn from past Fiber Fests. It's funny how often when typing "yarn" I misspell it as "yearn"...is it that my subconscious is expressing its desire for more fiber?

Off the Hook: Little Crocheted Pieces

I have two crochet demos coming up this week, but a lot of the examples that I would usually bring to show the versatility of crochet are currently in display cases in two Wake County libraries. I decided to make some quick projects so I could add to the few pieces I still had at home. Here are what I came up with.

Bunny

For this little crocheted amigurumi I used Jessica Doering's "Bunny Easter Peeps" pattern. It's free and available on Ravelry. I used Studio Samples by Nicole acrylic yarn from A.C. Moore in an aqua shade a little darker than shown in the photograph. The eyes are glass beads from my stash (which I've probably had for ~50 years...never know when you'll find a use for things), the nose is pink wool needlepoint embroidery yarn, and the stuffing is from a bag of polyester filling.

Basket

I made this little basket out of Hemptique brand hemp craft cord. The cord is rather stiff and, after wetting the pieces, I dried the main part stretched over a bowl until it was dried. It came out stiff enough so no stiffener solution was needed. The pattern is "Easter Basket,"a free pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

To fill the basket, I bought a crocheted chick and rabbit from Ten Thousand Villages.

Lots of Fiber Crafts Demos This Week

This has been a big week for fiber crafts demos in our area by members of the Twisted Threads Fiber Arts Guild.

On Monday I participated in a demo at the Cameron Village Regional Library in Raleigh, NC. I demonstrated crocheting and gave out little crocheted hearts to people who visited our display. Another member demonstrated spinning and displayed some finished knitted and felted pieces she made with various fibers.

On Tuesday, I joined another demonstration at Eva Perry Regional Library in Apex, NC. Again, I represented crochet along with knitters and spinners.

Tomorrow I will be giving a presentation on shuttle tatting to a group of quilters. I hope that there will be some quilters who make crazy quilts because I'll have a lot of tatted scraps they can use to embellish their quilts.

Magnets for Lace Day

Every year the North Carolina Regional Lacers holds Lace Day in the spring in Chapel Hill, NC. It's a day of gathering with lacemakers from all over NC and part of Virginia to take mini classes, hear a lecture, take care of guild business, and display all kinds of handmade lace. Usually there is a vendor selling threads and tools, mostly for bobbin and tatted lacemaking. Those who register to attend also receive a goody bag.

This is the 4th year that I've volunteered to make magnets for the goody bags. Previous years' magnets were hearts, stars, and butterflies. This year it's balloons. Each magnet has a small piece of tatting...nothing fancy because I usually need to make about 90 of these to supply all the bags.

Over the years, I've purchased paper punches to have something different each year. This year's punch was smaller than those I've used before. I thought it would be too small to make a good magnet so I mounted the white balloons on scalloped circles of card stock in various colors. Each circle was coated with high gloss Mod Podge. After drying, the balloon piece was attached and then coated with Mod Podge Extreme Glitter.

The tatted pieces were rings of 10 picots separated by one double stitch. The thread is a DMC size 80. I left the tails on the rings so they would hang down like strings tied to a balloon. I gave each ring a swipe with more of the Mod Podge to make sure they would stick to the paper and to give them a little more sparkle.

After every thing was dry, I attached pieces of peel and stick magnet to the backs. This is the kind of magnet that is used to make magnets out of business cards. You can cut them into smaller pieces with regular scissors.

Every year it's fun to come up with a new idea for the magnets. I already have planned what I'll be making for next year's NCRL Lace Day.

This Week's Blinged Shuttles

I finished decoupaging three shuttles this week. The one with hearts is the second version of the one that I wrote about in my previous post. I didn't like the final effect and decided to strip off everything on it and start over. This time I used Martha Stewart Crafts High Gloss Finish instead of the UV-activated gel. I like the results much better this time.

For the teal and gold shuttle I used a handmade paper made from cotton fibers. I bought the paper in our local Ten Thousand Villages store where I volunteer. I like the rustic finish of the paper which even shows through the gloss finish.

For the floral pattern shuttle I used a sheet from a Love Nicole Vintage Wallpaper paper pad that I found at AC Moore. This paper is thicker than the origami paper that I usually use. So far, it seems to be adhering to the plastic shuttle with no problem. 

Both papers were glued on with Mod Podge and then, after drying, I applied a couple of thin coats of the High Gloss Finish. All the shuttles are Moonlits that I purchased from Handy Hands.