A Twist in My Plan

I'm working on writing up the pattern for Countess Cathleen, my hooded cabled cloak. But of course I need a project on the needles, so I started on my next design, Cherish the Ladies. This will be a large cable and twisted stitch patterned wrap with knit-as-you-go fringe and bead accents. 

The easiest way to work twisted stitch patterns is in the round. I don't know about you, but I find cabling on wrong side rows a complete PitA. My solution is to add a steek section, which will be unraveled after it's cut to create the fringe (ta da!) allows me all the ease of knitting in the round and still end up with a flat wrap. 

There is one problem with adding a steek section and knitting in the round: the dreaded "join, being careful not to twist" with such a large number of stitches. I won't lie: to get the design just how I wanted it, plus the steek section, resulted in a cast-on of 631 stitches.

That's not a typo. 631 stitches in sport weight wool on a 3.5mm/US 4 circular needle. 

(Did I happen to mention this is my Year of Going For It? 😂 Just wait! I have more to come!)

Anyway, I got it cast-on...

and all was going well... until somewhere along in round 4 when I straightened out a lot of the knitting and discovered The Twist:

Fiber friends, I could've cried. I actually had to walk away from it for a few days, and work on some personal projects instead.

I'm in the midst of casting on again, using a trick I found online somewhere. While casting on, weave a piece of ribbon into the cast-on every so many stitches; I like using 20 but 10 or whatever number fits your pattern repeat is also good.

How does this help? It makes seeing the twist easier because the ribbon contrasts with the stitches, where the stitches against more stitches of the same color is harder to find. Especially for those of us whose eyes are a little older 😉

So that's where things at KDRD headquarters (ie the couch in my living room) are right now. Hopefully I'll have in progress pictures to share with you soon.

What are you working on, fiber friends?

Yours in yarn, and one very long cast-on,

Síle

Accepting Testers!

What a happy day! My Hornpipe Bag pattern is ready for preview knitters!

What is preview knitting? Usually called test knitting, preview knitting is when a designer has had their pattern techedited but would like there to be more than their own sample project associated with a pattern they want to release. It's also a chance to see if your instructions are really as clear as you and your techeditor think they are. As always, the Hornpipe Bag pattern was techedited by the wonderful Heather Folkner of Crafty Ferret Techediting.

As I've mentioned before, I'm running this on the Yarnpond site, which is a new experience for me! I've heard good things about Yarnpond so I'm hopeful this will be a good match for me and my patterns. You can find the test for the Hornpipe Bag by following this link: Yarnpond Hornpipe Bag test

If you have double-knitting experience, enjoy testknitting, and/or want to knit the bag pictured here, be sure to apply!

At some point this spring/summer the weather is going to cooperate so that I can get proper photos of my Hornpipe Bag by my brilliant photographer, Krista of KristaDani Photography. Until then I've got the above photo and another one. I snapped both using my phone in bad indoor lighting. 

In other Knit Dance Repeat Designs news, I've received the first couple prizes for my upcoming mystery knitalong (mkal)! I will share photos when the mkal is officially announced and on sale. Until then I'll just say these are suitable items for knitters and crocheters, and one is very pretty. Like I want to get at least one for myself kind of pretty. Aren't I a dickens dropping hints like this? ;)

And that's everything on this Thursday morning! Mid-June already! Where does time get to?

Yours in yarn, and sample knits,

Síle

Celebrating KIP

Did you get out to celebrate World Wide Knit In Public Day (WWKIP Day) yesterday? There wasn't an event near me this year, but I'm now thinking about next year. Well, depending on where I'm located anyway. Not leaving Newfoundland; possibly changing locales. And yes, I've been saying this for about 9 years now lol. I digress.

I've seen a lot of fantastic photos on Insta of various gatherings yesterday and it looks like everyone had a great time. I know I really enjoyed past events with my knit night pals (waves to Lindsay, Susie, Sara, and Michele 👋🏻) before my big move. We'll see if I keep track of time better and remember before 3 days before the next one. Next year's WWKIP Day is June 10, 2023. If you'd like more information about WWKIP Day, the official website is here: WWKIP Day🔗

Bringing things closer to home, I'm getting the photo tutorial done for my Hornpipe Bag before I release it for testing. The pattern is ready to go but I think having the tutorial ready first will be a benefit to testers as well as knitters. Stay tuned for the announcement that the test has gone live, later this week! I'll be conducting this test via Yarnpond, which is a new venue for me. I'm quite excited to give it a try! Now if only my helper wouldn't help quite so much...

Speaking of giving things a try, I'm at work on the sample for the mystery knit-along I'm planning to host later this year. And I'm putting together some prizes for it too ;) My current timeline for this is to announce the mkal and have it on sale next month, and then the Steps will be released weekly starting in late August/early September. 

I picked up my Twist Again (pattern by Robynn Weldon; pattern page in her Payhip shop 🔗 recently and have a bit more done on the body. I really love this cable panel. Hopefully I'm better at staying focused the next while and I'll have a new sweater for when colder temps reappear! (Unless of course another design idea jumps to the forefront of my brain)

Did you attend a WWKIP gathering yesterday? What's on your needles or hooks? I'd love to hear about it :)

Yours in (fur covered) yarn, and upcoming news,

Síle

Beginning of the End

I've started casting off my Hornpipe Bag today! :)

For those of you just joining in, my Hornpipe Bag is a double-knit drawstring bag, worked from the bottom up. I'm knitting it in Bernat Sox in the "Rainbow" coloway and Patons Kroy in the "Coal" colorway. It features a knotwork motif on the bottom and which is repeated four times around the sides on alternating backgrounds. 

As with all double-knits it takes longer than you originally think. You're literally making both sides of a two sided fabric at the same time; twice the number of stitches as appear on either side. Not quite twice the time to knit but it does add extra time to the process. Of course I have the added issue of having several projects on the go at once; some designs of my own, others by other designers that I want the item or it's perfect as a gift for the knit/yarn worthy in my life. I counted 10 works in progress last week, 6 being my own designs. Ah, the glamorous life of an independent knitting pattern designer ;)

If you're not familiar with double-knitting, I wrote a bit of an overview last year here🔗 on this blog, and I also recommend checking out Alasdair Post-Quinn's site (link in the side menu), Fallingblox Designs.

I'm using a bit of a different cast-off method with my bag, and I thought it would be fun to give a bit of a breakdown here for future reference. This cast-off looks decorative which makes it nice for the top of a bag, or really anywhere you'll be seeing the cast-off a lot, like a scarf end.

For the explanation below instead of alt-captioning the photos, I'll be describing them in detail below each photo for everyone. That way if I need more characters and/or words to describe things it won't be cut off.

So to start, this is a photo of what the first 8 or so stitch-pairs look like cast-off:

What's going on? The first section of my bag has a black background of stockinette on the outside, and all of my stitch-pairs are black/multicolored, a black knit stitch and a multicolored purl stitch. In the photo there are multicolored "blips" near the top edge, and a black stitch with a yellow one  collared with it. The collar is the last cast-off stitch. 

Let's back up just a tick. When double-knitting in the basic way with two colors your background will be one color on one side and the other color on the opposite side. Whichever color you knit with, you purl the other stitch of the pair with the other. So here I've been knitting with black and purling with the multicolored yarn for my background. The stitches alternate in the needle, black, multi, black, multi, etc.

Ok, now to work the cast-off. I'm using both yarns as one for the entire cast-off. Knit the first stitch, and purl the second. Now lift the first double stranded stitch over the second and off the needle; this is the usual movements for casting off that you're probably very familiar with. But with double-knitting you have twice the number of stitches and it could splay. (Which come to think of it, would be an interesting way to the shape the bottom of a cowl. I digress!)

What I'm doing on this bag (and other projects in double-knitting) is reducing the stitches to one side's worth and casting-off at the same time.

Ok, we've got one double-stranded stitch on the right needle, originating from one knit and one purl stitches. This is the point the above photo is at. 

Work the next pair of stitches the exact same way: knit one with the double strand, and purl one with the double strand. You have three double stranded stitches on the right needle now; right to left: the combined stitch from the previous stitch-pair, a knit stitch and a purl stitch. First you need to create a second combined stitch by lifting the knit stitch over the purl stitch...

... which leaves two double stranded combined stitches on the right needle. Next we cast-off the first combined stitch by lifting it over the second combined stitch...

... returning us to having one double stranded stitch on the right needle. From here we continue the process set out: knit, purl, reduce to one stitch, cast-off the first reduced stitch on the needle.

Using both colors of yarn leaves a neat sort of braided pattern to the top of the cast-off edge:

I think this a great decorative detail and it happens naturally, no extra work. Always a bonus! 

That's where I'm at with the Hornpipe Bag this evening. Once the cast-off is finished, I can start the drawstrings. Let's here it for i-cord! ;)

Yours in yarn and decorative edging,

Síle

Well Did You Ever...

 What a swell party this is! 

Yes, I once again have song lyrics stuck in my head :) Hard not to some days, especially when you learn you hit "save" on a post but not "publish" *facepalm*. So today you can read two posts that are new to you!

I meant to write this earlier this month, but life has a funny way of derailing plans. 

Are you familiar with Germander Cottage Crafts? It's a blog and shop run by Hanna, and she's been running featured indy designers every month. I'm so pleased to be May's featured designer!! Be sure to pop over and have a look see at both the blog and shop :) 

Speaking of Off-Rav Designers, one of my personal projects right now is Aoibhe Ní's Finola (link is directly to the pattern page on Aoibhe's website, YarnTowers.com). I hadn't ever done more than a square in Tunisian crochet before and look at this beautiful shawl I'm in the midst of!

If you've ever considered trying Tunisian crochet, I highly recommend Aoibhe's patterns. Not only are they well written, she also has fantastic videos showing exactly how she does the various steps of the pattern. And I'm not normally someone who finds videos helpful! You can find my project notes for this, and my other projects, over on my other blog here.

How's your weather? We're having a cold rainy snap to end out May. Really hoping weatherman Eddie is right and warmer temps are coming to start off June!

Speaking of June, how is that next week already?? They say time flies when you're having fun but I haven't had much fun lately, and it's still zooming by!

That's it for today! Be sure to checkout the hashtag #WIPWednesdayOffRav on Twitter and Instagram today for all kinds of inspiring projects, patterns, and yarns! Wednesdays are so nice with all the photos :)

Your's in yarn and a warm sweater (I told you it's cold here! lol),

Síle

Well That Was Certainly a Week!

I don't know about you, but last week was one I don't care to ever repeat the like of again. Between personal changes, my own health stuff, and an emergency with a feline household member I have no nerves left. Poof! Gone!

Less said the better on the first point, I think. I will say the timing couldn't have been worse seeing as how I was finally staring down the final hours to the specialist appointment on Thursday that was kicked off by my October of last year overnight trip to Town. Talk about your emotional rollercoaster!

The appointment/procedure on Thursday could've been worse. I was thinking it would be. Not something I care to repeat mind you, but it wasn't as bad as it could've been and I'm really trying hard not to look on the bad side. Now it's a hurry up and wait situation to get back the results, roughly 6 weeks. In that time I need to get bloodwork done (I might be anemic again. Talk about your throwback moments! I was on iron a lot of high school because my body liked to throw that at me on top of everything else), and the Drs (I saw a tandem team; both were great to talk with so that was a definite plus) were going to book me for an ultrasound, which I'll probably get a letter in the mail about as that's SOP for our health region.

So enter Thursday evening, and I'm sore and tired and already emotionally wrung out, when my precious feline nephew comes up from the basement and howls. And then only eats a few licks of his canned food that night, and barely has any water. And already tired Auntie slept in fits and starts to keep a watch on the poor little guy.

Long story short (for probably the first time ever!), he had a scab from his surgery site migrate, and block off the new opening causing him to react the same way as the first blockage. His vet had never seen the like happen before! Thankfully, after another overnight at the vet's and a catheter in place for another week, Jakey has been perfectly fine. He's even been trying to steal food! Not his usual modus opperendi but he's so cute so it's tough not to give in.

This has really been a week for comfort knitting and I've turned back to a shawl design I call Hap-Hazard. It's my go to when everything around me goes completely haywire, like the last 5 days! I'm hoping to have it in testing this summer. It involves a garter stitch center and picked up stitches with lace borders. I think you'll really like it. It's "moose lace" (and doesn't that conjure up a funny picture in your head!), that is I've used worsted weight wool (Briggs & Little Heritage for my sample) on 6.5mm/ US 10 ½ needles. It's big and squooshy, and feels like a woolly hug around you. Stay tuned for more on this one!

Here's hoping for things to go more quietly than this week from here on out!

Yours in yarn and sleeplessness,

Síle

Greetings from 2021!

That was a bit hectic! I'm so glad that so many knitters and crocheters enjoyed the Fasten Off Yarn Along :) It made for a very fun month! I love that we formed such an amazing community feeling in such a short time. 

Ah, but now the New Year's been rung in and things return fairly much to normal. Well, new normal anyway. I know some places are going into tighter Covid lockdowns again today. I hope all of the crafters have enough supplies to themselves through it all!

Are you a fan of goals at the start of the year? I don't mean the typically broken ones like losing weight or exercising X days a week. I mean fun goals, like reading X books this year, or learning to knit cables. 

I enjoyed the Challenge feature on R@v the last number of years, and I've done alright with it. I had a goal of 15 projects last year and I finished 17. We won't go into how many I started ;) I could still set a goal and track it here I suppose...

One thing I had decided on a bit ago was to knit myself a sweater each year; cardigan or pullover, didn't matter. As you know if you were following along, I knit a Harvest cardigan last fall (link is to the pattern's page on Tin Can Knits' website). This year's sweater is a pattern I bought during the Fasten Off Yarn Along: Twist Again by Robynn Weldon (link goes to the pattern page in her Payhip shop). I just love all those cables!! And I have a lovely dark lavender yarn for it :) I haven't started it yet. I've been tempted to, but I decided I need to get at least two projects off the needles first.

I did finish a project during FOYAL (although I only swatched one officially, the aforementioned Twist Again)! I finally got my G'night Cap by Sarah Schira (link is to her website) finished; I only cast-on in January 2019! I only meant to set it down for a week or so to finish up something else and... Anyway!! It is done, it is fabulous, and I love it! Picture? Why of course!

I used just a bit over 1 hank of Briggs & Little Heritage in "Light Green". It's cute and oh so warm :) Let January throw another Snowmageddon at us! Ok, not really; I don't want to that much snow at once ever again. But my new hat is warm and wonderful.

What am I working to finish up? So glad you asked! I started Simee Dimeh by Romi Hill (Sorry, no safe link at the moment. I know Romi is getting her website set up, and I that you can email her to get her patterns via email instead of through R@v at this time) last May and I'm in the midst of chart J. It ends after chart K, so I'm very close to finishing. I chose to use the rainbow for my 7 colors and ordered 7 hanks of Briggs & Little Sport from Wool Trends, one of the lovely lys' in St. John's aka Town. Here's where it's at currently:

How's that for colorful?! I've used red, orange, yellow, paddy green, light blue, blue heather, and violet to make my rainbow, and I'm really pleased with how it's coming along. 

So that sums up my personal knitting, let's look at my work knitting!

I published two patterns last year, the Treble Reel Toque and the Treble Jig Legwarmers (links are within this blog. You can also visit the Patterns tab near the top of this screen)

This year I'll be publishing the Hornpipe Bag and the Slip Jig Shawl. I'm continuing to work on the samples and tweak the wording of the patterns as I do so. (Behind the Scenes info: unlike some (most? probably most) designers, I first outline the pattern and swatch and make notes, and then I write the pattern as I knit the sample.) I hope to also publish at least one of the two other samples I have on the go currently. These are Hap-Hazard (my twist on a hap shawl), and Gone Feising (pronounced "feshing"; an Irish dancer's outfit for an 18 inch doll).

I'm also at work "translating" the charts from Rínce Fada into line by line instructions to make a low vision accessible pdf to go with the standard one already available. Because I charted it for reversible double-knitting (standard double-knitting gives you a mirrored image on the backside that gives you backwards facing letters and words), each and every stitch is represented, and when I choose the written instructions option from my charting software I get "KMC PCC KMC PCC KMC PCC..." instead of "(KMC, PCC) 3x..., so I have to manually edit each row, which isn't easy on my eyes, and yes, I'm taking regular breaks to rest them. I'm about half through chart B and the charts go up to I so it'll be a bit before I have it ready but I am working on it, and hope to have it ready to go for you summerish ideally. Watch this space! There will be fireworks* when I announce it's ready! *Not really fireworks. A photo of some most likely. No animations will be on this site. 

I think that's all I have to tell you about today. Happy 2021 to you, again :) If you'd like to tell me about your crafting goals for this year, please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you've got planned!

Yours in yarn and to do lists,

Síle

Fasten Off Yarn Along 2020

I mentioned this last post and now I have more details to share!

Fasten Off Yarn Along, the OffRav indy knit and crochet designer pattern sale and make along, starts on November 25th! Wednesday! Tomorrow!

So first off is the pattern sale. 93 designers, including me, will be offering a selection of their patterns at 25% off their usual price starting on November 25th and ending on December 5th. The sale code is the same across the board, on any platforms the designers choose to set it up on: FO2020. For example, the code will be good on all of my designs (except my ebook because it isn't fully complete yet) both here on KDR (see the sidebar labeled My Patterns --->) and in my Payhip shop (link also in the sidebar). All designers participating have at least one OffRav option for your safe pattern shopping, whether that be their own site, Payhip, or Etsy.

And I'm sure you're wondering what other designers are getting involved, and how to find them. Never fear! The crack team of Kathleen & Rachy have thought of that. There is website located here (also linked in the sidebar of this blog under Other Sites of Interest) which has searches of both designers and patterns, plus by craft, category, and who will wear it/use it.

What about the make along portion? I'm so glad you asked. This event is cross-platforms, and not just sales platforms!! There is a Twitter account, an Instagram account, a Facebook page, and a Discord server! Participate with whichever ones you're most comfortable with. If you're using Twitter and Instagram in particular, be sure you use the hashtags: #FastenOffYAL & #FastenOff2020 so your posts can be found and get the make along love they deserve. I have to say, I'm really liking Discord for chatting despite just learning how to use it. Old cats can learn new tricks! ;) 

The make along portion of events starts at 9pm EST (GMT -5) on November 25th (giving you time to buy a pattern or two first) and wraps up December 31st at 11:59pm EST (GMT -5)! Stay in and make along with old and new friends to Fasten Off 2020! There will be chatter and crafting and fun and community!!! Join in and help Fasten Off 2020 in crafterly style!

During the entire make along period, there will also be prizes! Each participating designer is donating free patterns of the winner's choice, plus there have been some generous donations of gadgets, and even yarnie goodness!! And there will be games! What's more fun than fibery games? Well, besides crafting that is! 

I hope you'll be joining in with me at the Fasten Off Yarn Along. I'll be cheering participants on, answering any questions, and making sure this is a fun and safe event for everyone. Unless someone is rude or bullying or using harassing language. That has no place at an inclusive yarn community event, and I will delete any harmful posts if they pop up on my watch. The code of conduct is posted on the Fasten Off Yarn Along site. It really boils down to be respectful and have fun while allowing other participants to do the same.

Now, I need to find those pompoms so I can properly cheer everyone on...

I wasn't kidding, I totally have pompoms at the ready:

Yours in yarn and pompom glory,

Síle