Here's the second yarn list recommended for colorwork so far. I added all the Elann and Knit Picks alpacas I like for stranded color knitting and a few others. It has occurred to me while doing this that I really don't have a lot of experience using non-wools for this purpose. For instance, I don't think I've ever used silk or a silk blend for two-color knitting. I've had some disasters with cotton and superwash wool though.
Fingering Weight
Dale of Norway Baby Ull superwash wool
Blue Moon Fiberarts Socks that Rock Medium Weight
Knit Picks Essential (wool/nylon)
Elann’s Peruvian Baby Cashmere
Elann’s Sock it to Me 4-Ply nylon/wool
DK/Sport Weight Rauma Pt5 Per Tryving wool/nylon
Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Heavyweight
Elann’s Pure Alpaca Fina
Knit Picks Andean Treasure (alpaca)
Crystal Palace Yarns Panda Cotton Solid (bamboo/cotton)
Worsted Weight Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair (mohair/wool)
Elann’s Peruvian Pure Alpaca
Anyone else have any recommendations? I'm sure I'm missing more sock yarns but I haven't used many of the newer brands for colorwork.
Working on 2nd Yarn List
Even though it is cooling here I am still not back to my usual knitting productivity. So instead I thought I'd work on a new yarn list. Last year with everyone's suggestions I compiled a list of basic wool yarns for colorwork. The yarns on the list were non-superwash, smooth and plied 100% wool yarns with more than 15 or 20 colors to choose from. I also stuck the list on the Stranded forum's group pages HERE.
This second list will be yarns that knitters like for stranded color knitting that don't fit the confines of the first list. All non-wool yarns, wool blends, superwash, single ply, lumpy, etc. yarns will work here. I'll link them all up to their Ravelry yarn page. Let's keep the list solid color yarns and preferably at least 10 colors to choose from but other than that the sky is the limit. I appreciate any and all suggestions you have for yarns you've used for colorwork and I'll put my request (and the final list) on Ravelry's Stranded forum as well.
(BTW, the yarn seen above is Pakucho organic cotton in many different naturally-colored shades. I'm hoping to try it for colorwork soon. Aren't the shades beautiful? It is so dark here today that I thought the flash would go off when I took the photo; there's no way those colors would have shown up in our normal bright sun.)
As you add your comments here and on Ravelry I'll keep adding to the list on this page. Thanks so much! A list of yarns other knitters have enjoyed for colorwork is very helpful to those new to stranded color knitting. If you sell yarns you think would work for color knitting, let me know in the comments and I'll add them.
I'll start by adding the one yarn everyone wanted on the last list because it is very popular for colorwork. It is superwash though so I kept it off the last list.
Fingering Weight
Dale of Norway Baby Ull superwash wool
DK/Sport Weight
Worsted Weight
Started the Bandelier Socks
I started the Bandelier socks from the Fall 2009 issue of IK in Palette. Earlier this week I had the flu and picked out the colors. I really like the colors so apparently that should be my color choosing strategy in the future!
Tonight is another Red Sox/Yankees game - their games are often extra-long so I'm hoping it will go into 21 innings and 6 hours so I can finish a good amount of the sock.
Living
I am an episodic blogger. Not that I really mean to be that way. It just happens. I post happily, whenever I do, but then days go by, and sometimes weeks, without a serious post, apart from my weekly color post on Sundays. The days, and weeks just seem to roll away from me...
I am having a great summer with good knitting, designing and dyeing luscious colors, lots of fun with the children going to the water park,dealing with an occasional virus, sewing darling summer dresses for myself mind you, going shopping, homeschooling, and going back to school to add a degree to my collection of degrees, a degree in interior design!
I guess I do believe in living to the fullest! This last year,as a matter of fact these last 3 years have been a challenge for me, with my miscarriage in February probably being the hardest, but I feel that I have learned so much about who I am, and what matters to me, and of course maybe simply that I matter.
I hope your summer is as good as mine. Why don't you share with me what you are doing?
I am having a great summer with good knitting, designing and dyeing luscious colors, lots of fun with the children going to the water park,dealing with an occasional virus, sewing darling summer dresses for myself mind you, going shopping, homeschooling, and going back to school to add a degree to my collection of degrees, a degree in interior design!
I guess I do believe in living to the fullest! This last year,as a matter of fact these last 3 years have been a challenge for me, with my miscarriage in February probably being the hardest, but I feel that I have learned so much about who I am, and what matters to me, and of course maybe simply that I matter.
I hope your summer is as good as mine. Why don't you share with me what you are doing?
Coastal...
Next weekend, Mr. SockPixie and I will be heading to Maine for a great weekend, just the 2 of us! I have been daydreaming about the coast, the beach, the sea, the seagulls so much that I created a collection of yarns inspired by the coast.
I have never seen Maine, so all my Coastal thoughts were memories of my vacations along the Normandy Coast in Deauville and Trouville.
Here is a lovely painting of Deauville follwed by my Tides Colorway.
I hope you enjoy the Coastal collection
I have never seen Maine, so all my Coastal thoughts were memories of my vacations along the Normandy Coast in Deauville and Trouville.
Here is a lovely painting of Deauville follwed by my Tides Colorway.
I hope you enjoy the Coastal collection
Upcoming Color Knitting Books
I love the dark days around here - they are so rare and everything is a different color and a little foreboding.
The colors of this juniper remind me of Christmas.
The colors of this juniper remind me of Christmas.
I just realized that Amazon now has "Look Inside" options for my Glove Knitting and Stranded Color Knitting booklets. So if you have a technique question and you don't have the booklets, you might be able to get the answer there.
Here are some more upcoming knitting books of interest to color knitters:
Norwegian Handknits: Heirloom Designs from the Vesterheim Museum - There is a message thread devoted to this book on Ravelry's Stranded forum and there's a lot of buzz about the Foolish Virgins pillow design. I'm definitely getting this book. You can preview some of the designs by using the search inside/surprise me function at that Amazon link.
Color by Kristin: How to Design Your Own Beautiful Knits by Kristin Nicholas - Amazon says she explains techniques and color theory and it includes some projects. I may be tempted but I need to see some of the projects first.
Fair Isle Knitting Patterns - This booklet contains charts of traditional Fair Isle patterns based on the work of Robert Williamson from the early 1900's.
The Dale of Norway Vancouver Olympic sweater pattern is now available. I wish it didn't have so much boring solid color knitting. Bea Ellis' blog states that Dale has four new books coming out soon so I'm hoping I like those more.
Oh and check it out - Allegro Yarns is now selling a kit for the famous out-of-print Dale polar bear sweater. Just the pattern for this has been selling on Ebay for more than the kit.
Homespun Handknit
Now that they are coming out with a new edition of Homespun, Handknit, I've been thinking about the first version. I seriously loved the old book. In fact, I'd say it is one of my top 3 most used knitting books; I'm sure I've knit 50% of the projects in the book. When it came out I kept checking it out of the library until I realized I couldn't live without it. I didn't know how to spin then so I made most of the projects from commercial yarn.
The book has sentimental value since I learned how to knit using it and most importantly, this pattern for the Holiday Socks on the left was my very first stranded knitting project. I made them in purple and teal acrylic (I wish I'd saved a photo) holding both yarns in my right hand. They were difficult to pull up over my heels but I loved how they looked.
Just in time for the Hatch, NM green chile crop, I've finished my first booklet of healthy, plant-based recipes. Fiesta Vegan: 30 Delicious Recipes from New Mexico is 43 pages with lots of photos, a list of NM gourmet food destinations and some online resources for buying southwestern ingredients. It can be purchased in print or as a .PDF file from my Lulu store or as a Kindle book ( does not include photos or page numbers). The PDF version is abut 6 MB. The print version will also be listed on Amazon (with free super saver shipping) in about a week. My cooking blog has a list of all the recipes and some photos.
Out of Africa
This week we are going to Africa. The book and movie Out of Africa was my inspiration, and somehow I felt that solids were the only possible choice to reflect the depth of the colors of Africa.Enjoy the Out of Africa Collection !
Ripping Out the Whistler Sweater
BEFORE:
AFTER:
I wonder if anyone has ever analyzed the ratio between how long it takes to knit something and how long it takes to rip the entire thing out. Say the knitting time was 30 hours and the ripping time was 15 minutes? It really is mind-boggling. Anyway, as you can see I ripped out the Whistler sleeve. My row gauge was way off - I was supposed to be at 12" before starting the upper sleeve colorwork and I was already at 13 1/2". I think it is an easy enough fix - I could just do the increases every 3 rows instead of 4. Of course instead I've decided to make it harder on myself and completely re-engineer the sleeve with a ribbed cuff instead of a hemmed one and a different colorwork design - maybe the one from the Notre Dame Cuff.
Bubbles has to turn away from the knitting carnage taking place.
AFTER:
I wonder if anyone has ever analyzed the ratio between how long it takes to knit something and how long it takes to rip the entire thing out. Say the knitting time was 30 hours and the ripping time was 15 minutes? It really is mind-boggling. Anyway, as you can see I ripped out the Whistler sleeve. My row gauge was way off - I was supposed to be at 12" before starting the upper sleeve colorwork and I was already at 13 1/2". I think it is an easy enough fix - I could just do the increases every 3 rows instead of 4. Of course instead I've decided to make it harder on myself and completely re-engineer the sleeve with a ribbed cuff instead of a hemmed one and a different colorwork design - maybe the one from the Notre Dame Cuff.
Bubbles has to turn away from the knitting carnage taking place.
SockPixie is off tonight
SockPixie is off tonight celebrating her little pixie's 8th birthday. New colorways will be updated on Monday 08/03 at 6 p.m.Have a great Sunday.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)