tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11233258813880437232024-03-14T05:41:41.742-04:00Arenda HolladayMaster KnitterArendahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17666945330743311307noreply@blogger.comBlogger205125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-14847414579806666582020-06-29T12:41:00.000-04:002020-06-29T12:41:13.956-04:00Grafting in Stitch PatternsI am appalled that my last entry was in October of 2019! It seems like yesterday. I have the same old excuses...writing Module 2 of the Professional Knitter Certification, the Winter (and Spring and Summer!) issues of <i>Cast On</i>, the holidays, surgery, pandemic, etc. etc. I've finally realized my schedule isn't going to improve as I'm now working on Module 3 of the PKC program and the Fall issue so I have to make time.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Another thing that has kept me busy is the number of lessons I've received to review. I continued to review during the stay at home orders and I'm glad I did. There would be such a backlog. I am going to change where I post new students and completions. From this entry on I will be posting this only in Ravelry in the TKGA forum. There are just too many to list!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
My tip this week is about how to graft stitch patterns so that the pattern is not disrupted at the seam. How strange that this is also the topics of the Special Topics in Finishing for the Fall 2020 issue of <i>Cast On</i>. Coincidence? I think not. I discussed this in an earlier blog entry when you are grafting the TOPS of both pieces, say shoulder seams or the toe of a sock. Here is that link: <a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2017/05/grafting-in-pattern_26.html" style="color: red; font-weight: bold;">Grafting in Pattern (at the Top of Both Pieces)</a><b style="color: red;"> </b>When you use this technique there will always be a half stitch offset. <br />
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If you are grafting the cast on edge to the top of a piece (say for a cowl) you can use a technique where there is no offset stitch. In the discussion that follows my assumption is that you are familiar with Kitchener Stitch. If not, it might be rough going.<br />
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To use this technique you must use a provisional cast on. If you don't have a favorite method, you can check the index of my blog as I've discussed several ways to do it. The photo below shows a swatch with the crochet chain at the bottom. There is a 24 row pattern repeat and since the graft will provide a row of stitches, only 23 rows have been worked.<br />
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When you use a provisional cast on the stitches there is always one stitch less in the cast on edge. There must be the same number of stitches on both ends. You will need to create a stitch on one side of the cast on edge by pulling a loop from the selvedge to the needle. Look at the close up of the cast on edge below. Notice that there are 4 stockinette stitches on the sides but on the right side there are only 3 stitches on the needle below the column of four. That is the side you need to "create" the stitch.<br />
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The procedure from here on is similar to Kitchener stitch. You orient the needles with the stitches at the top of the piece on Needle 1 (the needle on top) and the cast on edge on Needle 2. Note that there are now four stitches at the right side where I picked up the stitch.<br />
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Thread up a tapestry needle with yarn. The preliminary steps are different from Kitchener. Begin by inserting the needle purlwise into the first stitch on Needle 1. Then insert the needle purlwise into the first stitch on Needle 2 and drop it (Purl Off) and then into the next stitch knitwise (Knit On).<br />
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After that you have to look at the stitches as pairs. There are only four possibilities: two knit stitches, two purl stitches, a knit and a purl and finally, a purl and a knit.<br />
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From this point on, you look at the first stitch on Needle 1 and at the stitch to the left to determine what type of stitches they are. The shorthand for the each procedure is below.<br />
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<b>Knit Next to Knit</b><br />
Needle 1: Knit Off, Purl On<br />
Needle 2: Purl Off, Knit On<br />
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<b>Knit Next to Purl </b><br />
Needle 1: Knit Off, Knit On<br />
Needle 2: Knit Off, Purl On<br />
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<b>Purl Next to Purl </b><br />
Needle 1: Purl Off, Knit On<br />
Needle 2: Knit Off, Purl On<br />
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<b>Purl Next to Knit</b> <br />
Needle 1: Purl Off, Purl On<br />
Needle 2: Purl Off, Knit On<br />
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You repeat these procedures, depending on the stitches encountered, until the grafting is complete. The photograph below shows the completed graft. Notice that the stitch pattern is maintained. Here is a link to the video showing the process: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH0oUhcS2u8"><span style="color: red;"><b>Video</b></span></a><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It will come as no surprise that I haven't had salon since February. I had surgery in early March and as soon as I could get around again, the stay at home order was issued. I'm very hesitant to have people over. I couldn't live with myself if someone got sick. I'm firmly in the camp of Mask Wearers. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've knit so much since October, I wouldn't know where to start! I've posted them to my designer page in <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/designers/arenda-holladay"><span style="color: red;"><b>Ravelry</b></span></a>. The Social Distancing Coat nearly killed me. So many stitches, such small needles! I'm currently finishing up my things for the Fall issue. We had to make some changes since it was so hard to get yarn from yarn companies. I decided to add a section for designers using stash yarn. That was fun! I may have to do it for the Winter issue as well. I'm also working on the sweater students will knit as part of Module 3 of the Professional Knitter Certification. I won't every photograph it as the students will knit it a part of a scenario of doing a sample knit.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-86376264289211111682019-10-26T20:20:00.003-04:002019-10-26T20:20:56.551-04:00Provisional Cast On Part 3I am turning into the laziest person when it comes to keeping up this blog. I have very good intentions but something always seems to get in the way. I hate hearing excuses but here I go. The new Professional Knitter Certification (PKC) course has just been a huge time suck. I really thought I could knock it out over a couple of weeks. Module 1 has been released and there have been quite a few orders. I have almost finished Module 2. Carolyn, who will be the first graduate, is beta testing the materials and doing all of the samples. I did have to design a hat as part of it for it that required actually knitting it. It took much more time than I thought. The good news is that I should have it finished before the first student finished Module 1!<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
I have lots of new students, mainly due to the Professional Knitter Certification. There are five of us doing the teaching. All of the other teachers are co-chairs of the Master Hand Knitting Program so the students will definitely be getting their money's worth. Quite a few people have signed up for the Basics class as well as it can be a preliminary to our other programs.<br />
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<b style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tip of the Week</b><br />
I was writing for the PKC Reference document which has a swatch for grafting different stitch patterns and as I was checking my index I realized that I have omitted a technique for provisional cast on which is the one I use the most! I immediately did a video and now I am doing the blog entry.<br />
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I've done videos for two of the other techniques. For one, you crochet a chain and pick up stitches with the working yarn in the bumps on the back of the chain. The problem with this is that it can be a real pain counting the links in the chain and an even bigger pain unraveling the chain when you are finished. In the other method, you cast on stitches directly to a circular needle which stays in place until you use the provisional cast on. The problem with this technique is the tension of the stitches can be difficult to control and they sometimes stretch out further on the circular needle cable.<br />
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I find this method absolutely pain free. You need some waste yarn, a knitting needle and a crochet hook. The <span style="color: red; font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3v8xnLJPcY"><span style="color: red;">video</span></a> </span>shows how to start this but the basic procedure is to make a slip knot on the crochet hook, place the crochet hook on top of the knitting needle, bring the yarn under the knitting needle and pull a loop through the crochet hook. The photo below shows the finished process. <br />
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Notice that the cast on edge looks like standard bind off. If you want your cast on to match the bind off you can use this technique. Next you use your working yarn to start your project. When you are ready to use the provisional cast on, you unravel the change and insert a needle in the stitches.<br />
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There will be one less stitch on the cast on edge. The video show how to fudge an additional stitch. If you look at the far left stitch on the bottom you can see the fudged stitch.</div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'll be having salon tomorrow (Sunday) from 2-4 pm. I spent four hours today at the Met HD Simulcast of Massenet's Manon. It was a marathon. I forgot how long the opera is. Lovely but long.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I did finish up all my projects for the winter issue. I didn't take a photo of everything but I did manage a photo of this baby dress knit in Hazel Knits Jolene.</span></div>
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I spent quite a bit of time working on the hat pattern for the PKC Module 2. I knit one for a child first and then decided to do a baby one instead.</div>
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This is the top of the child version.<br />
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Here is the top of the baby hat.<br />
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Before I start on things for the Spring issue of Cast On I'm making a baby sweater. I hope to get it to the baby before his first birthday! This is the back. The actual color is a richer red.<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-78963252821853653782019-08-31T15:03:00.002-04:002020-02-11T15:42:29.823-05:00Yarnovers, Redux<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Yes, it has been quite some time since I have posted. I spent June and July getting the fall issue of Cast On out (August 1st) and since then I have been working on our newest certification program--The Professional Knitter Certification. It covers much of the same topics as the Masters Program but doesn't require writing or research. Practical applications of techniques are tested. It is geared towards sample and test knitters but anyone who wants to improve their skills would benefit. We have decided to release it in Modules. The first Module should be ready for sale on September 25th.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Student News</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">My students have been busy this summer. I've reviewed quite a few lessons. Most take the Basics class as preparation for the Masters Program. It will be interesting to see how many decide to the Professional Knitter Certification instead.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><b style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Tip of the Week</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">This tip is in response to things I saw in a sample for Cast On (and the Skill Building article for the Winter issue is on this topic as well). One of the sweaters in the Fall issue was knit in cotton and had a lace pattern that abutted some reverse stockinette. The size of the yarnovers on either side were radically different in size. I've always known that yarnover size can vary depending on the stitch before and the stitch after the yarnover.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yarnovers can be placed between 1) two knit stitches 2) a knit and a purl, 3) two purls and 4) a purl and a knit. Most knitters assume the yarnovers will all be the same. They are not. If you look the next time you work a yarnover between two knit stitches, you will see that when you bring the yarn forward around the needle and then knit the stitch, that the yarn does not go fully around the needle. The way most knitters make the other types of yarnovers they go completely around the needle before working the next stitch. Since knitted fabric is so forgiving, particularly if you are working in an elastic fiber like wool, you never notice this. If the yarn isn't elastic, these yarnovers can vary quite a bit in size.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In the photograph below I've worked several yarnovers. If you look very closely, you can see that the yarnovers go completely around the needle for those where a purl stitch is on one side. The first on one the right (between two knit stitches does not.</span></div>
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The next photo shows the yarnovers worked. The ones where the yarn went completely around the needle are larger (duh). In most lace patterns there is so much going on that you don't really notice the differences in size all that much but for some type of projects it is a usually thing to know about this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VxuRJkwezjRT3_8Z8er-8CaxyfoIpl2lYECLfaLpaPeGWQ9eIWmnr84wMQ9uk4oLc4jRgioiCWqbNYZRHUIIw9eEqzbNVMTEd4rBUw9pA8og4RmewR4Gf3IOR-f0o6DNTjKBEe5CcvGB/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="476" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VxuRJkwezjRT3_8Z8er-8CaxyfoIpl2lYECLfaLpaPeGWQ9eIWmnr84wMQ9uk4oLc4jRgioiCWqbNYZRHUIIw9eEqzbNVMTEd4rBUw9pA8og4RmewR4Gf3IOR-f0o6DNTjKBEe5CcvGB/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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In the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNb9SCLajuU"><b><span style="color: red;">video</span></b></a> I demonstrate alternate ways to make the yarnovers smaller to match the ones between two knit stitches. (You can also make the one between two knit stitches larger by wrapping the yarn from the back to the front and going completely around the needle.)<br />
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In this photograph you can see that the yarnovers look pretty strange compared the other photograph. The good news is, they are easy to work and look just fine when the next row is worked.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdS254Tqm4V2F6nRB46CcqNK7b5sIscct8MkcwE2F-lfmoOQ5vHV1vDoqYtmdk5Cf1ehyphenhyphenWn_OUbAoB2rkLmbreqLSHpe7-UaG5XbcxYmF026nZhTB6TmyFTEDNcw9nkcsVrswHi3ZINBuJ/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="192" data-original-width="460" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdS254Tqm4V2F6nRB46CcqNK7b5sIscct8MkcwE2F-lfmoOQ5vHV1vDoqYtmdk5Cf1ehyphenhyphenWn_OUbAoB2rkLmbreqLSHpe7-UaG5XbcxYmF026nZhTB6TmyFTEDNcw9nkcsVrswHi3ZINBuJ/s640/3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This photograph shows the yarnovers using the method in the video.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76CSgH42FEd0ksrZpbEUzGmUBy45C1v5PXDtYn1Gg7-NHhGerV6EdfE4Y9M-7tt2mz4PFOKSpAsfrwzzTbfFbyw4aPHR8T5aw4I6LZ_I7NMpKabpPcdmIKQtuQBPWPzVbUc4Auf34XcJq/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="184" data-original-width="476" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76CSgH42FEd0ksrZpbEUzGmUBy45C1v5PXDtYn1Gg7-NHhGerV6EdfE4Y9M-7tt2mz4PFOKSpAsfrwzzTbfFbyw4aPHR8T5aw4I6LZ_I7NMpKabpPcdmIKQtuQBPWPzVbUc4Auf34XcJq/s640/4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
I did finish the thigh high socks in time for the Fall issue. They were fun to make.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-lewTCMXnr1lsQgJBTa0sBPSRgpHqw6eTXxjYBuwZ7MjpZ_xXFkoHcUk7i_dS9N_wXhptncQJIS8sg4UHV6tbRM6yH7VEq9UwBdMvvntgLq5hs_RerNm1brcqFmYgfmvxGJQbJWxGXAjZ/s1600/AH_Chevron_1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="595" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-lewTCMXnr1lsQgJBTa0sBPSRgpHqw6eTXxjYBuwZ7MjpZ_xXFkoHcUk7i_dS9N_wXhptncQJIS8sg4UHV6tbRM6yH7VEq9UwBdMvvntgLq5hs_RerNm1brcqFmYgfmvxGJQbJWxGXAjZ/s640/AH_Chevron_1.JPG" width="238" /></a></div>
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After I finished those, I did two kid sweaters with a cat head motif. I did samples for both sizes as it was so fun to knit.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ1PowimJf-_VhIdvqYAusIxc1GzZFKRW0vSTJoJ1hU-4xm-1491NX8GZHCjBLEfLMdj3Se8SgJ7a-KwjUDe6AjtI_QxHtnb77E4sg8LYQnj4LIuvCSq35bIKeBySS4eH7NTD0tehY8ohR/s1600/AH_Miaow_9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1409" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ1PowimJf-_VhIdvqYAusIxc1GzZFKRW0vSTJoJ1hU-4xm-1491NX8GZHCjBLEfLMdj3Se8SgJ7a-KwjUDe6AjtI_QxHtnb77E4sg8LYQnj4LIuvCSq35bIKeBySS4eH7NTD0tehY8ohR/s640/AH_Miaow_9.JPG" width="562" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Now I'm hard at work on the items for the Winter issue. </span>I had two extra skeins of Zealana Cozi left over from the slip stitch cable mitts I did for the Fall issue. I love this yarn. It produces such a wonderful fabric.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGxM6EJcAUV6PHg8gzi-HT65UT6XAkg_GWKdl_S8xAVxQge6Sh5XZTRA2a8p2FwHWbaIOmuYCwZsCcP_DeJ1obgFZg0wgIurhtwVegs9xapBxEDJUvoKyrcZu9ucaPFnJdK-6eENsb8-NW/s1600/IMG_0741.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGxM6EJcAUV6PHg8gzi-HT65UT6XAkg_GWKdl_S8xAVxQge6Sh5XZTRA2a8p2FwHWbaIOmuYCwZsCcP_DeJ1obgFZg0wgIurhtwVegs9xapBxEDJUvoKyrcZu9ucaPFnJdK-6eENsb8-NW/s640/IMG_0741.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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The Fashion Framework article is on pleats so I did a skirt with faux pleats with a button closing at the side. I used some wonderful vintage Bakelite buttons I got from Dusty's Vintage Buttons at TNNA this past June.</div>
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I'm currently working on a tunic but I haven't photographed it yet.<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-32892418663838099222019-06-14T18:12:00.003-04:002019-06-14T18:12:29.101-04:00Gauge Measurement vs. Finished MeasurementsYes, it has been quite a while since I've posted. It was a busy spring. Travel, getting Cast On out, developing a new certification course have all taken precedence. Masters Day at the DFW Fiber Fest was a success. We hope to go back next year. The Spring 2019 issue of Cast On came out on May 1st. Since then I've been working on the new Professional Knitter Certification Course. It is basically the Masters Program without research, writing and design. It is designed for those who want to improve their knitting skills but don't want to do the Masters and those who hope to work in the knitting industry as sample/test knitters or finishers.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student News</span></b><br />
I've been keeping up with my student's work. I've been getting a lesson just about every day for review. I will be one of the instructors for the new certification program. I think the workload for just one instructor. We announced the program at Masters Day and the response was positive to say the least. There will be a team of us but the instructor will work with the student as a mentor throughout the process.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tip of the Week</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is a request from several people working on Level 1 of the Masters. One of the questions concerns measuring for gauge and measuring finished measurements. This has always seemed a no brainer to me but I've noticed that sometimes it is the simplest questions that cause the most concern. The knitter over thinks it and makes it more complicated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The majority of knitters I encounter do not calculate gauge in a way that is going to produce useful information. Casting on 10 or 12 stitches, knitting an inch, binding off and then counting the stitches/row for an inch isn't the best way to do it. For specifics on how to work a gauge swatch and calculate gauge, look at the index for this blog. I've discussed is many times.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Gauge Swatch</b></span></div>
You do not want to measure the entire swatch. Selvedge stitches and the cast on/bind off edges are not the same size as stitches and rows. You want to measure a large enough area that you get a good average over four or more inches. Nobody's knitting is absolutely perfect. There will be variations in the stitch size even for knitters with good tension. In the photograph below (which isn't a real gauge swatch, I was just lazy) I've placed markers to show exactly what I would measure and count for the gauge--no edges are included. ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS block the swatch and let it dry completely before taking the measurements! The gauge swatch is a snapshot of your garment.<br />
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Your gauge swatch for a project should be for the stitch pattern specified in the pattern. If it is for a lace pattern, working a gauge swatch in stockinette isn't going to be helpful. If is it a design with multiple stitch patterns, make sure you work a swatch for the predominant pattern. If you look below at my current projects, I've just finished a sweater with a single cable panel. My gauge statement is for stockinette. If you are designing a project and it has multiple stitch patterns (as for an Aran design), do a gauge swatch for all the patterns.<br />
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<b>Finished Measurements</b><br />
In the Masters Program you have to provide finished measurement for all of the projects and that includes the swatches. The finished measurements are exactly what it says. The piece is measured after any finishing...seams, bands, blocking, etc. The whole thing is measured and for swatches that means selvedge stitches and cast on/bind off edges. If you look at any pattern you will see finished measurements include length and width. For a swatch, this is simple. For a garment, it can be more specific. The photo below shows an old project. The finished measurements for this piece is the length from shoulder to hem, circumference at the chest AND and the bottom since this is an A-line design. <br />
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Finished measurements are different from schematics generally found at the end of patterns to show the "pattern pieces." Schematics are particularly helpful for blocking. Schematics can also help for items which might have an unusual shape, such as shawls.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj940T920mexwnzGticILdwbnY-NaMKiDrXCTbhM5i5o-Pr4zojukr62aXsgaBjPWWO6xaxc6G0-ziaAODp0vnAQyLx_K5cjEgxGxFtqSiiLKHmIO7CoXRalMZv9b_ehGV9rT8a_Zib7qCm/s1600/top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="1600" height="542" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj940T920mexwnzGticILdwbnY-NaMKiDrXCTbhM5i5o-Pr4zojukr62aXsgaBjPWWO6xaxc6G0-ziaAODp0vnAQyLx_K5cjEgxGxFtqSiiLKHmIO7CoXRalMZv9b_ehGV9rT8a_Zib7qCm/s640/top.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I hope this helps clear things up. Also, I'm working on the Fall 2019 Cast On and the On Your Way to the Masters addresses this. Here is a <span style="color: red; font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_M3hnZ58rk"><span style="color: red;">video</span></a>.</span> </span>I know the sound is not great, some sort of technical issue but I don't have time to redo it today.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Knitting Salon</span></b><br />
Salon will be on Sunday, the 16th (yes, I know it is Father's Day) from 2-4 pm.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Current Projects</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've finished two of the things I'm doing for Fall 2019. This is the When the Snakes sweater. The yarn is Miss Babs Yowza in color Oyster. The cable panel runs diagonally from the hem to the shoulder. It is slightly wider at the bottom. I wanted a big old comfy sweater with extra long sleeves.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI9hTAVUlruK6dOG89vrmY9I0EwQMWpm6kYnFPd-ZlL_hpw8ntsA2lsmXP2p9iv0ukQYFQh4BweHR4TKTmIMGaKb1-1xo3lQQYUEnHZ5nvC_o5e4o-b0xX0cBKrEUDG9PIsqIAS8dklaGY/s1600/front+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="477" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI9hTAVUlruK6dOG89vrmY9I0EwQMWpm6kYnFPd-ZlL_hpw8ntsA2lsmXP2p9iv0ukQYFQh4BweHR4TKTmIMGaKb1-1xo3lQQYUEnHZ5nvC_o5e4o-b0xX0cBKrEUDG9PIsqIAS8dklaGY/s640/front+.jpg" width="544" /></a></div>
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Here is the back. The cables meet at the shoulders, sort of. I did saddle shoulders.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCLEzSWh8ljKXr6TXW72gVRBlLWC4X0FwGa9QETqrNU_N1scM1jM_HDx4bIup3xtXa5U9D9r9Iy-KmRZe3ySU5HBaeQeXhVUHsWgWpNxtllpz5Q7CRWD-vnd86PdDXvBkSaHXhE7246-kw/s1600/back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="414" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCLEzSWh8ljKXr6TXW72gVRBlLWC4X0FwGa9QETqrNU_N1scM1jM_HDx4bIup3xtXa5U9D9r9Iy-KmRZe3ySU5HBaeQeXhVUHsWgWpNxtllpz5Q7CRWD-vnd86PdDXvBkSaHXhE7246-kw/s640/back.jpg" width="554" /></a></div>
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You can see the cable panel runs up the sleeves to the neckline.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYu50griqJwlprKzlozHt8eLnbLSzpJGm_iG7yRmVcx4A40aVPp9tFBJjzLA5CQWM7qGH6w2lPY2PI6FiVT3z8W99EXTGXlszTikUkPTZW7QgjxhtZmH5gbVIvpmW9UB7V0NFrqLJ6Gqt5/s1600/side.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="478" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYu50griqJwlprKzlozHt8eLnbLSzpJGm_iG7yRmVcx4A40aVPp9tFBJjzLA5CQWM7qGH6w2lPY2PI6FiVT3z8W99EXTGXlszTikUkPTZW7QgjxhtZmH5gbVIvpmW9UB7V0NFrqLJ6Gqt5/s640/side.jpg" width="524" /></a></div>
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The Special Topics in Finishing article is about cleaning up thumb/finger joins in mitten/gloves. I decided to do fingerless mitts (to keep it simple) with a slip stitch design. The yarn is Zealana Cozi. It is lovely to work with and produces a rustic fabric perfect for these mitts. I'm thinking of doing a matching hat for the Winter issue.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQcIIqL7iJbBztKtgjI-3hofKRa2CK7EwYzBSEijAcswEEU7y_TJfnEpqv2E-li9qSBCkqmGdNvuNxZRQ6QTmMAnOVsycWHXUzr1zEALDliGmm_hFEFDGWZAa4pqulU8wIkOGEoV3xCy7D/s1600/mitts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="477" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQcIIqL7iJbBztKtgjI-3hofKRa2CK7EwYzBSEijAcswEEU7y_TJfnEpqv2E-li9qSBCkqmGdNvuNxZRQ6QTmMAnOVsycWHXUzr1zEALDliGmm_hFEFDGWZAa4pqulU8wIkOGEoV3xCy7D/s640/mitts.jpg" width="614" /></a></div>
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Next up, thigh high lace socks. When I was in Vegas this spring I saw a mannequin at a lux store with lacy thigh highs and I thought that would be fun. You can see I have a LONG way to go. When the socks are on an actual leg, the lace pattern opens up. The yarn is Wollmeise and the fabric is really stretchy. Next up, two kid stranded sweaters. I haven't got the yarn yet but it is Lornas Lace,</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBulGR6K4v41ajZS2E_Fr48FvfuVfNpJLiBDM8zfzq0Lc3ps0sPADS3VSizQAR37wzA6p_TuV-bGONyiA0uVfhzoZZ4S8VYvIEZcHi6LAvtBvyIHzq9BS379o21zUaGnylMpvE3njq6ouy/s1600/sock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="553" data-original-width="380" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBulGR6K4v41ajZS2E_Fr48FvfuVfNpJLiBDM8zfzq0Lc3ps0sPADS3VSizQAR37wzA6p_TuV-bGONyiA0uVfhzoZZ4S8VYvIEZcHi6LAvtBvyIHzq9BS379o21zUaGnylMpvE3njq6ouy/s640/sock.jpg" width="440" /></a></div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-8174123867917011562019-03-29T15:38:00.000-04:002019-03-29T16:04:35.139-04:00Selvedge Tension Issues<br />
To distract me from all the knitting and writing I am supposed to be doing I decided to sort my button collection. A month or so ago I bought a large box of buttons from a woman who was selling her mother's odds and ends. I figured this was a good time to sort through all of those I've bought over the years primarily from Dusty's Vintage Buttons (if she has a booth at a show, definitely visit). The photos represent the tip of the iceberg. The first box is a SMALL part of my mother of pearl buttons and the others are bakelite. I've got quite a few boxes and many more to go.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8d6tmDt9tZyqIfDokm5Waq9ysXWGXSpBJh9aGlf4Z2RcAOlaS0_I394Ll3U0C-IAAYArw1ZEftWQh-owtyQ28j2kNXpb66OChlhd5HsvwWulODqgtFndiS4x9B33xhckLAAbTv-2B5vH/s1600/button1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="570" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8d6tmDt9tZyqIfDokm5Waq9ysXWGXSpBJh9aGlf4Z2RcAOlaS0_I394Ll3U0C-IAAYArw1ZEftWQh-owtyQ28j2kNXpb66OChlhd5HsvwWulODqgtFndiS4x9B33xhckLAAbTv-2B5vH/s640/button1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXGRLR25pjxh8-Mg3Q5kzIF0nIyuzKNBaqugZuYk8VrNpJcU9aTYtaMfi7sBYyWTL-JaalWRsQA5Zd7wdHLINFVoRiExAGFNuiBWM68944eC1_lAtNC01Lm55kaVXNRSiliTHvuNI8ZbVx/s1600/button2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="599" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXGRLR25pjxh8-Mg3Q5kzIF0nIyuzKNBaqugZuYk8VrNpJcU9aTYtaMfi7sBYyWTL-JaalWRsQA5Zd7wdHLINFVoRiExAGFNuiBWM68944eC1_lAtNC01Lm55kaVXNRSiliTHvuNI8ZbVx/s640/button2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span></div>
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I've reviewed quite a few lessons and received many course orders. It seems a lot of knitters plan on working on their skills over the spring.</div>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span></div>
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Again, what I've been seeing in the lessons has prompted this discussion. I've reviewed many lessons where the knitters' overall tension is very nice but there is a problem at the sides only. This is a different issue that the entry I made last year about ugly selvedge stitches (<a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2018/09/ugly-selvedge-stitches.html"><span style="color: red;"><b>link</b></span></a>). This tension issue is where the stitches next to the selvedge stitches vary in size. It is very unattractive particularly if the edge is to be seamed or is next to a band. </div>
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I've been working with non-wool fibers for the Summer 2019 issue and it is more of an issue with inelastic fibers. In the sample below, worked in 100% cotton, the lower part of the swatch shows what this issue looks like. The first photo is the RS and the next photo is the WS. Note the gutters at the bottom of the swatch. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9yR-LWYWfvAkeLcYOYH6cQ-q22oIQwlmIt1sdcaYNDZADYk36JvM9BIKMVw046XmhX7t_2Gk1gfCd0ZOxXZuCrxureVHjXDYEJr7OL2fMq9wVG4idHkf1pnGWNo0V1c5Mngdw4B15yMP/s1600/cotton1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="354" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9yR-LWYWfvAkeLcYOYH6cQ-q22oIQwlmIt1sdcaYNDZADYk36JvM9BIKMVw046XmhX7t_2Gk1gfCd0ZOxXZuCrxureVHjXDYEJr7OL2fMq9wVG4idHkf1pnGWNo0V1c5Mngdw4B15yMP/s640/cotton1.jpg" width="510" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKRgChPvzRVgomkVJ1DGWCznjKY8oR3-bkFzHQ-XrNAlTn-oOAxNAfHsOkaNJr6LInlpW6uAnkAeI3EUxDCjuxTms7RUtyL_3OLrLP412k_k4rBLkQjXnIihkWoSRVUngVseBO0jNq8Ce6/s1600/cotton2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="509" data-original-width="406" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKRgChPvzRVgomkVJ1DGWCznjKY8oR3-bkFzHQ-XrNAlTn-oOAxNAfHsOkaNJr6LInlpW6uAnkAeI3EUxDCjuxTms7RUtyL_3OLrLP412k_k4rBLkQjXnIihkWoSRVUngVseBO0jNq8Ce6/s640/cotton2.jpg" width="510" /></a></div>
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There is an easy fix you can try. For most knitters, if you tighten up at the beginning of every row and loosen up a bit at the end of every row, you will eliminate this problem. However, you must be careful when beginning the row. I've seen knitters who tighten up so much BEFORE beginning the row that all they do is draw the yarn from the previous row making those stitches even smaller. What I generally do is work the first two stitches normally and then work the next three stitches more tightly. When I get to the end of the row I use just the needle tips to work the last three or four stitches and I try not to slip them too far down the needle barrel.<br />
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Here is a video showing this technique: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1TVNRQtoVQ"><b><span style="color: red;">Tension issues at the side</span></b></a><br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span></div>
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I was thinking of having Salon on Saturday but the Metropolitan Opera's simulcast is Die Walkure so I'll be at the theater for 5 1/2 hours. Salon will be on Sunday but I'm not sure of the time yet.</div>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span></div>
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I finished up a few late Christmas gifts before starting on the Summer 2019 projects. I made a skirt and top set with 100% hemp. I can't say it was fun to kit but the drape on the skirt is amazing.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafhLuC2GtiWjFdiU2WCf3T_9sw8OKqHd0tKScLqVHlPhahjblOTkmKOvjKz8TNJuosv7pB902CwhRppXFSwfUzznT9327q7xxG6OUO5qDOWL2eesY11xz5BaTmwSV59awm5XhKKd8IghB/s1600/Skirt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="263" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafhLuC2GtiWjFdiU2WCf3T_9sw8OKqHd0tKScLqVHlPhahjblOTkmKOvjKz8TNJuosv7pB902CwhRppXFSwfUzznT9327q7xxG6OUO5qDOWL2eesY11xz5BaTmwSV59awm5XhKKd8IghB/s640/Skirt.jpg" width="464" /></a></div>
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Here is a closeup of the puntas edging.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmoziCa8DIyS0v03uRnichSqM7g3_auCkaAQfD01hsCcPX2uiIjPaxy0HcqIQk74zZGU2mKDEPQID-FIuoO3O_lC0TM5WnagYAbFzadc7y7O4btbi2mJU-FJcYMIhR1VHYAAYlQ5UcJ4MV/s1600/skirt+closeup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="844" data-original-width="499" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmoziCa8DIyS0v03uRnichSqM7g3_auCkaAQfD01hsCcPX2uiIjPaxy0HcqIQk74zZGU2mKDEPQID-FIuoO3O_lC0TM5WnagYAbFzadc7y7O4btbi2mJU-FJcYMIhR1VHYAAYlQ5UcJ4MV/s640/skirt+closeup.jpg" width="374" /></a></div>
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Here is the top. I CLEARLY need to steam it before the photoshoot. (I used some of my vintage buttons...)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcF_Gjlb4kO6AxPoBr1_AFcq_4ISWgQRlRbzCyZqsBdY525tf-niBU4ruQxV3_FiN0Hn26noL-ZX_KNuw1uJRQJGcJpSP_j-2PXNhllqfVO5BW7KdBvcG0naRsE0Ysv-mVXk_nEV2X4t99/s1600/top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="587" data-original-width="363" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcF_Gjlb4kO6AxPoBr1_AFcq_4ISWgQRlRbzCyZqsBdY525tf-niBU4ruQxV3_FiN0Hn26noL-ZX_KNuw1uJRQJGcJpSP_j-2PXNhllqfVO5BW7KdBvcG0naRsE0Ysv-mVXk_nEV2X4t99/s640/top.jpg" width="394" /></a></div>
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Next up was the Confident Beginner project which accompanies Binka Schwan's Skill Building article. This one was on double decreases worked on the RS and WS. I used the yarn left over from the Intarsia Top in the last issue. I found an interesting stitch pattern with a 5 row repeat which meant that the rows would alternate on the RS and WS when worked flat. It was perfect for the scarf. I used a provisional cast on so that I could work one side with CDD decreases and the other with S1k2tog psso decrease. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAtEbpfojiEqUU0o-TsLsm7nKMWOlRVXjTFR8PWZp_LlmL7E1t-1agZiDV8nizXpCbKMjmAKhs84CmE3a6kRV-1we6gO_w9_IzFdQSrslM0ZEjY8UFo4MbYPwl3tvqwHjY-5lFHv2F-gB/s1600/scarf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="357" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAtEbpfojiEqUU0o-TsLsm7nKMWOlRVXjTFR8PWZp_LlmL7E1t-1agZiDV8nizXpCbKMjmAKhs84CmE3a6kRV-1we6gO_w9_IzFdQSrslM0ZEjY8UFo4MbYPwl3tvqwHjY-5lFHv2F-gB/s640/scarf.jpg" width="394" /></a></div>
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The colors in the photo above are more accurate but here is what it looks like at the cast on.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0oGmaUBAPbwtbJC2UF0NnjX2Q4ZlaOosSQrCq5fkOF3qYPtqvv7p5V3bwISHK9eZrEI7lhgFyn2ljRlaYK-oJePK2nA3spZ_tUYtB9ZKRAE4e0Bzg5o39hZjijg2_yp33o9NueT02l20/s1600/IMG_0409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0oGmaUBAPbwtbJC2UF0NnjX2Q4ZlaOosSQrCq5fkOF3qYPtqvv7p5V3bwISHK9eZrEI7lhgFyn2ljRlaYK-oJePK2nA3spZ_tUYtB9ZKRAE4e0Bzg5o39hZjijg2_yp33o9NueT02l20/s640/IMG_0409.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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I've finished the baby sweater but I'm still working on the child size. Then I'm done.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOFuYXelOeKXCQkcjI1k0dNsTi0ER7hcEamotOh_CHTSkStADSRpzDjqtD_v8GkadargbKtFjG2afA-o4VBq7utGibTiIpD7nOOW0M3k7JvwUS7L0UfYMOehYHAOD7BH1oyw6pLrzYMZk/s1600/sweaters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="415" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOFuYXelOeKXCQkcjI1k0dNsTi0ER7hcEamotOh_CHTSkStADSRpzDjqtD_v8GkadargbKtFjG2afA-o4VBq7utGibTiIpD7nOOW0M3k7JvwUS7L0UfYMOehYHAOD7BH1oyw6pLrzYMZk/s640/sweaters.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-2463740175048590902019-02-08T11:00:00.003-05:002019-04-17T16:59:27.336-04:00Starting a SeamI've finally recovered from getting the Spring 2019 issue of Cast On out. Today is the deadline for submissions for Summer. It never ends! After I make this post that is what I will be doing.<br />
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I took this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPldeEFbbXA"><b><span style="color: red;">video</span></b></a> of George when he discovered the roving I'm using for the booties (see below). I hope my friends don't mind a bit of cat spit. I posted a longer version on Instagram. He really is a sweetie.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Students News</b></span><br />
Now that the holidays are over, I'm getting more and more lessons. Keep up the great work. The postal rates changed on January 27th. Since I use Stamps.com, I actually prefer the way the new First Class postage is calculated. Just a reminder for non-US students, please photograph your swatches, front and back, before you send them to me. I keep them until the course is complete to keep the cost the same.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
I've reviewed several finishing lessons and the same question has come up. The Figure 8 method for beginning a seam causes all sort of problems. I've done several entries on it before but I realized I need to focus more on <b>exactly</b> where to begin. My method is different but I've found it works quite well and it avoids the issue of rows not lining up.<br />
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The long-tail cast on produces the first row of stitches and there are two strands of yarn below the stitch. I use both of these strands in my seams and I start the seam in the lowest strand. I do this as, in the past and I'm in a hurry, I have lined up the second strand on one side and the strand from the first row. If you do this, the seam is slightly off and the rows don't line up. If you take the time to use both of the strands in the seam, it happens less. I see this all the time in my students' work.<br />
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The photos below show the start of the seam on the smooth side and on the bumpy. This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERYTCy_A91s"><b><span style="color: red;">video</span></b></a> shows the technique.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcgLNX6kAzH87NG3gCaSuJbPPErsW1qKsYLDu0VIZZYWmHhMh7klqhD2e1iV-fqjhKUbaopMaoxFqdQsrWDEq3F2h8jGnUbX11QOZNleqQCoNl54wbx_UOQfi1rZgxDxM7v2b23PkpDGQ/s1600/IMG_0322+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="191" data-original-width="480" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcgLNX6kAzH87NG3gCaSuJbPPErsW1qKsYLDu0VIZZYWmHhMh7klqhD2e1iV-fqjhKUbaopMaoxFqdQsrWDEq3F2h8jGnUbX11QOZNleqQCoNl54wbx_UOQfi1rZgxDxM7v2b23PkpDGQ/s640/IMG_0322+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsv0njXAqmW9Z8Ck-PM9dYNC2gm9Lq8XL9zeGBeqoPH-jK8JunoQ_fjxgQv4t7NHiGULBTLUIoIz2yRIC-_fuY9fyI6lrgFQR8OueH-T2aMeupNEhYIxC5TEkHQBZ34_U0aHUJe9zMB-PE/s1600/IMG_0320+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="479" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsv0njXAqmW9Z8Ck-PM9dYNC2gm9Lq8XL9zeGBeqoPH-jK8JunoQ_fjxgQv4t7NHiGULBTLUIoIz2yRIC-_fuY9fyI6lrgFQR8OueH-T2aMeupNEhYIxC5TEkHQBZ34_U0aHUJe9zMB-PE/s640/IMG_0320+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Here are photos of the completed seams.<br />
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I'll do another video soon on how to finish off the seam at the bind off edge.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 2-4pm.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
Here is the reason I didn't get any knitting done before Christmas...I don't know what I was thinking. My New Years Resolution several years ago was to write patterns IMMEDIATELY after I finished something. Well, I was so afraid I wouldn't make the photo shoot date, I held off on writing the patterns. That was a very unpleasant experience I hope NEVER to repeat.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEULL4wazUderLrUBq-aKKNwYfRXCau3r6wHop_Po_vzWgdxVnGWXyyBAvnmbbXeXdnOhB_ycUvRdUDtj-a2F6R6Vk9-5QqnN_uBeARCWE8_ODqCpcR7KmRkEKSDDOnXqhsPpna_csZSn5/s1600/Spring+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1486" data-original-width="1600" height="592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEULL4wazUderLrUBq-aKKNwYfRXCau3r6wHop_Po_vzWgdxVnGWXyyBAvnmbbXeXdnOhB_ycUvRdUDtj-a2F6R6Vk9-5QqnN_uBeARCWE8_ODqCpcR7KmRkEKSDDOnXqhsPpna_csZSn5/s640/Spring+2019.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Now that all of that is done, I'm trying to get out the presents before I start working on the summer issue. Everyone except my nephew is getting thrummed booties AND I am using yarn that has been in my stash for at least 10 years. (That is this year's resolution, to make a dent in my stash for personal projects. Of course, that doesn't mean I won't be buying more yarn!) </div>
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Here are Martha's booties. (They were accompanied by a bourbon tasting.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUq1zrNugs7V3E4WvLZ5nsdvGferJ0tav78w2ked9tyhQWD3K-VKvDhxp7gaRe28CMNBg66HRTYSvYWHMC5QdU112GbkFMk1PwEHDNdGzuLLLjzgLv9eMAxzsJDIM2tqhFeqM-a9s6CbZ2/s1600/IMG_0303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUq1zrNugs7V3E4WvLZ5nsdvGferJ0tav78w2ked9tyhQWD3K-VKvDhxp7gaRe28CMNBg66HRTYSvYWHMC5QdU112GbkFMk1PwEHDNdGzuLLLjzgLv9eMAxzsJDIM2tqhFeqM-a9s6CbZ2/s400/IMG_0303.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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Here are Nora, Stephanie and Christian's presents. I used Carolyn Vance's pattern for the Swedish Block Scarf from the last issue of Cast On for Christian's scarf.<br />
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I'm hoping to finish up the rest this week....<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-4800071942414225192019-01-06T14:02:00.000-05:002019-01-06T14:02:10.177-05:00Neater SSK DecreasesI apologize for not posting sooner but between travel, the holidays and the Spring issue of Cast On (see Current Projects) I haven't had much time. I have really been knitting like mad to make the deadline for the photo shoot.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Quite a few people have signed up for the Basics course and several for the Finishing Course. I haven't received many lessons yet but I expect an uptick now that the holidays are finally OVER!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've had several students sent me links to videos show a new way to make neater SSK decreases. This new method (I'm not going to put links in for this method as they all omit one rather important detail) is fine for your own projects but if you are working on the Masters Program the results of this technique are not acceptable. </span><br />
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When you need to use mirrored decreases (to shape a neckline, for example) there is a problem. K2tog produces a neat, right slanting decrease. (It slants to the right since the stitch to the left is on top of the stitch to the right.) Left slanting decreases aren't quite so neat and tidy. When I first started knitting, the preferred technique is the SKP (and this is still the preferred technique in Britain and Japan). Since just the first stitch is slipped and then passed over the second stitch, it often produces a very stretched out, large left slanting decrease (the stitch to the right is on top of the stitch to the left.) A big improvement on SKP is the SSK since two stitches are slipped, the decrease is smaller. How nice the SSK looks depends on your technique. If you use just your needle tips and really baby it, you can get a pretty good decrease.<br />
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One improvement over this technique that my students suggest is slipping just the first stitch when working the SSK. Yes, this is does make the decrease slightly smaller but it twists the stitch to the left. For decreases to be fully mirrored, they have to be the same type of decrease, that is untwisted or twisted. A newer version of the same decrease is making the rounds now where you insert the needle into the first stitch and then into the back of the next stitch and then pull the yarn through both. It produces the same result. None of the videos I've seen make mention of the twisted stitch. After teaching the Basics class for 10 years I have learned that many knitters cannot read their work and can't tell the difference until it is pointed out.<br />
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In the photo below I have worked a swatch using larger needles that I normally would. If you look at the left side, I have worked a series of K2tog decreases. On the right side I've worked SSK and variants so you can compare.<br />
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First look at the K2tog decreases. Notice that the stitch to the left is on top of the stitch to the right AND that stitch is open at the bottom, that is not twisted. That is what we are looking to match on the right side.<br />
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Look at the decrease on the right side with a <span style="color: red;"><b>1</b></span> to the left. I used just the standard technique for SSKs (which I demonstrate in the video) but I have used just my needle tips and really babied. I must say, it looks pretty good. When I worked the decrease labelled <b><span style="color: red;">2</span></b> I used a technique where on the row <i>before</i> the decrease row (the WS row) you wrap the stitches to be decreased the wrong way. This alters their orientation on the needle. When you slip the stitches for an SSK this is what you are doing so this technique skips that step. Since they aren't slipped, they are less stretched out.<br />
It looks pretty much the same as the SSK where I babied the stitches. Notice that the stitch to the left is open at the bottom and matches the K2tog.<br />
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Now look at the decrease labelled <b><span style="color: red;">3</span></b> and notice that it stands out more than the others. The top stitch is twisted as well as the next stitch. This happens if you don't slip the stitches knitwise before making the decrease. Twisted stitches are tighter than regular stitches and have a different gauge which is why you generally avoid them unless you are working Bavarian patterns or come lace patterns.<br />
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The decreases labelled <b><span style="color: red;">4</span></b> and <b><span style="color: red;">5</span></b> use the techniques I mentioned above. The second stitches are twisted. If you look closely you can see that they do not match their counterparts on the opposite side of the swatch.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhFTiLhv-8d-Vooer8jRiFwP2fexmGS8KKFcXzV_VEFMJwOUqr_oDmWACfWUJpg6GFUbVqXc-AGqrlXC2iSpQ0GVuMzkXmXw6Wp6BjuS6Q1LvhUiTV_JxgQQhwrvlmRNy76wRz_dqKCUJL/s1600/IMG_0251_numbered.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="453" height="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhFTiLhv-8d-Vooer8jRiFwP2fexmGS8KKFcXzV_VEFMJwOUqr_oDmWACfWUJpg6GFUbVqXc-AGqrlXC2iSpQ0GVuMzkXmXw6Wp6BjuS6Q1LvhUiTV_JxgQQhwrvlmRNy76wRz_dqKCUJL/s640/IMG_0251_numbered.JPG" width="640" /></a> </div>
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In the photo below I've placed arrows below the second stitches so you can see the twisted stitches and compare them. This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZurYTADLL8M"><span style="color: red;"><b>video</b></span></a> demonstrates all of the techniques I've discussed here.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymFMr3QBVLHB9-WB6NJmcnyObWCfP-T0N2zdgx-u_zLI3qvkq5rDFOLDkdqevBNJf7zyWh_DyzCMillod7Dn-v_8M7FvaCrP03X3iKoF6X6LVY_YrEmgdTs0YyBAyQMJF_jBYYtwZVtOu/s1600/IMG_0252-arrow.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymFMr3QBVLHB9-WB6NJmcnyObWCfP-T0N2zdgx-u_zLI3qvkq5rDFOLDkdqevBNJf7zyWh_DyzCMillod7Dn-v_8M7FvaCrP03X3iKoF6X6LVY_YrEmgdTs0YyBAyQMJF_jBYYtwZVtOu/s640/IMG_0252-arrow.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
Salon will be today from 2-4 pm. Despite my laziness in not posting I have had salon most every weekend. Hopefully those coming today will help me get rid of all of the lovely chocolates left over from the holidays!<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
My holiday knitting never got done, or even started! We start working on the Spring issue in November and it is ALWAYS a problem getting designs for this issue. Knitters do not want to commit to extra knitting over the holidays (even when I try and guilt them into it!) What seems to happen every year is I wind up taking on more that I'd like so I have been knitting like a mad person to get these things done. The worst part is that I've put off writing the patterns so the week after the photo shoot will be a horror show! Not shown is a pair of knee high socks. I'll photo them in my next entry along with (hopefully) very belated Christmas gifts.<br />
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This one is a cover up. I envision it being worn over yoga clothes.<br />
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The Stitch Anatomy article is about elongated stitches. The bottom of the sweater & cuffs are the sea foam pattern. The Special Topics in Finishing article is about sewing on buttons which I better read before I put on these buttons...<br />
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I loved Leslie's article on Puntas so I designed this top to use the intarsia technique but added the bottom border. Puntas are really fun. I plan to use them again.<br />
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This is the Confident Beginner garment to accompany the Skill Building article on WS decreases. That lace at the bottom doesn't have any plain rows. I love it. Thank you Barbara Walker.<br />
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I think you can see I will be busy this week. None of the yarn tails (except on the Puntas Top) have been woven in and I also have to knit those knee highs....</div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-56804696490163721852018-11-04T15:23:00.000-05:002018-11-04T15:40:32.241-05:00Thrums-Tip of the Week 11/04/18<br />
I apologize for not posting sooner...a confluence of travel and getting Cast On out. At the end of September I taught at the What the Knit! Retreat in Three Rivers, CA. This is Suzanne Bryan's guild and Binka and Charles were there as well. It was a wonderful weekend. The retreat center was very peaceful (code for no cell service) and my students were fabulous.<br />
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Halloween was last week. Jan brought a present for George. You can tell he isn't thrilled. It is a fish hat.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
I'm thrilled that several students have completed the Finishing Course. It is a very comprehensive course and, to be truthful, a bit of a slog. I'm impressed.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
For the Winter issue of Cast On we included quite a few quick knits. I did a pair of thrummed socks. They are a quick knit since I used Medium weight yarn. Working thrums isn't hard but it does require advanced preparation and a bit of patience. Here is a photo of the booties.<br />
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The thrums are pieces of roving knit along with the working yarn. I'm not a spinner so I don't have roving on hand but most yarn stores do carry some and if not you can get it from KnitPicks. You can see in the photo above that the thrums line the inside to make the booties extra warm.<br />
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Making the thrums isn't hard. Pull off a piece of roving about 5-6" long, stripping off sections to make it thinner. Fold it in thirds or fourths and you are ready to go. If you are member of TKGA, you might want to look at this past article by Heather Storta (<a href="https://tkga.org/article/fashion-framework-thrumming/" style="color: red;"><b>Thrums</b></a>)<b> </b>You have to sign in to see the article.<br />
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I've seen two methods work working the thrums. In the first you work just the thrum and strand the working yarn behind it. The problem with this method is that if the thrum pulls free it is a dropped stitch. In the other method, you knit the yarn and the thrum together. The problem with this is that on the next round or row, you have to work the thrum through the back loop which can be a pain.<br />
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That is all there is to it. Here is the link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTm6K0ASWqA"><b><span style="color: red;">Thrum video</span></b></a>. By the way, I replaced my ancient video camera with my new iPhone and I am technically challenged so I'm still working out the kinks. Hey, but you don't need to sit through any advertising...<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
I'm actually posting this after salon (it has been a rough week) so unless something drastic happens, Salon will be next Sunday from 1:30-3:20.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
Looking back at my previous post it looks like I was working on the Wasp Wing Cardigan. I finished it as well as everything else I did for the magazine.<br />
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I did several things as quick knits. The gnome hats were so quick I knit four of them with the Universal Deluxe Worsted left over from the intarsia sweaters.</div>
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I used Redfish Worsted to make the Fleur de Lis cowl. (I hadn't woven in the ends yet.)<br />
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And here are the booties. I used Pokeberry Station Worsted.<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-18158722616679669482018-09-21T15:02:00.001-04:002018-09-21T15:02:37.818-04:00Ugly Selvedge Stitches<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been traveling quite a bit so I've haven't posted in a while. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The new George continues to improve. He is so affectionate now. He doesn't want to let me out of his sight, particularly since I haven't been home. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I've had lots of new students sign up for not only Basics but also Finishing and Swatch to Sweater. I've notice that this happens every fall. Just a reminder to my non-US students. I will hang onto your swatches until you complete the course. International postage is so expensive. I would have to raise the price of the course otherwise. I do include lots of photos of what I am talking about.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I'm teaching at a retreat in California next weekend and one of the topics the students wanted covered was ugly selvedges. At first I thought they meant the tension issues that you can get in the stitches next to the selvedge. Nope. They meant the actual selvedge stitches. I've never worried about selvedge stitches. They are just ugly. This is not a problem in projects which will be seamed or have bands since the selvedge stitch is hidden by the seam or the band. They provide the "seam allowance." Although they are ugly these stitches should be neat and tidy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">If you look at the section marked A, notice that the selvedge stitches are a bit large. It really isn't a problem in this case since the size of the stitches next to the selvedges don't have a tension issue. If you look at the section marked B, notice that they are smaller. I accomplished this by making sure there was no excess yarn when I formed the next stitch.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kkhN4iqGBbYIoamTtsP_Ik8DCgbGyyREUGCx4OCEbEB0wgnYJ_UgOTEt_e_Sho_eTX50r1HfK494zzRARABnl5UDDpyhl3zkbfp0GIRXvZxvPBSMIPXUlmIvfn0VshRyniTbP_Jl3oPY/s1600/IMG_1638_LI+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="384" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kkhN4iqGBbYIoamTtsP_Ik8DCgbGyyREUGCx4OCEbEB0wgnYJ_UgOTEt_e_Sho_eTX50r1HfK494zzRARABnl5UDDpyhl3zkbfp0GIRXvZxvPBSMIPXUlmIvfn0VshRyniTbP_Jl3oPY/s640/IMG_1638_LI+-+Copy.jpg" width="540" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Ugly selvedge stitches in garter is a problem. If you look at the section marked C, notice that the selvedge stitches are larger and this detracts from the general appearance of the piece. Section D looks better as I took care to tighten up ever so slightly at the beginning of the row.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The one thing you DO NOT want to do is to really pull the working yarn tight when making the first stitch. All this does is pull yarn from the previous row which causes a tension issue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">So what do you do if your piece will not be seamed or have bands. You can use a special selvedge stitch. My favorite is to slip the first stitch. This creates an edge that looks exactly like the bind off. If you look at the photograph below you can see a problem immediately.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzVQC14d2jT03cF2VxNzdf5j2k2sqfobvaJ7tCDH-GqvbOxLeqemjvKfX0ZUbSn93EivzJh02LvV9FshtwOaYXCrCcxG15dUOPBXFC3VHz-1JqGhjOwoFa9Aeoz6YZvBFVqzqWlBoOkSB/s1600/IMG_1639+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="356" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzVQC14d2jT03cF2VxNzdf5j2k2sqfobvaJ7tCDH-GqvbOxLeqemjvKfX0ZUbSn93EivzJh02LvV9FshtwOaYXCrCcxG15dUOPBXFC3VHz-1JqGhjOwoFa9Aeoz6YZvBFVqzqWlBoOkSB/s640/IMG_1639+-+Copy.JPG" width="474" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">There is a huge tension issue at the stitches next to the selvedge. It is better at the top of the swatch. I used a tapestry needle to shift the yarn in the larger stitches. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I've met quite a few knitters who do this for all of their projects. I don't recommend it, particularly if the piece has a band. The loops at the selvedge each represent two rows. Yes, it is easier to pick up a band but the ratio will be all wrong and it will be puckered. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Here is a video demonstrating the techniques: <a href="https://youtu.be/VG8t94StIVo"><span style="color: red;">Ugly Selvedge Stitches</span></a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Salon will be on Sunday from 2 to 4 pm.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I finished up the second intarsia sweater in the other color palette. It is sized for children.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitMo87GI5C3g1oJNX8GGy0kAbaw5Zt2GWDPiiNLDQue8JkAJ1wRaT39Csnckp_-a42wQkkNccjjSGnOuGhBXgBBIl0u0f-ZkJ0_JHthJoRdCCFWix5D6sUMQRG8euujh073TOUxK0-RwPH/s1600/IMG_1636+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="436" data-original-width="452" height="610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitMo87GI5C3g1oJNX8GGy0kAbaw5Zt2GWDPiiNLDQue8JkAJ1wRaT39Csnckp_-a42wQkkNccjjSGnOuGhBXgBBIl0u0f-ZkJ0_JHthJoRdCCFWix5D6sUMQRG8euujh073TOUxK0-RwPH/s640/IMG_1636+-+Copy.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I'm now working on the long cardigan. The back is finished and the fronts are blocking. I absolutely love the fabric. It is Shibui Reed and Silk Cloud. This sweater is a redo of one I did years ago but I've never been happy with the pattern. I've changed how the different sizes are worked. I also made it longer. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhOlwZrSDAKgdsvwNRbak-UhEFsoOkKHJkAvLpZA2Fj5-CFxeS-hr56aMlVQbSmy_-5_BJDhW7Z_Qud62aqs5HTFAZIH3DOdkcmUiPoR8ry7-gWNF0RIh9X0wIcpUekShxyl2GstFqo1T/s1600/IMG_1637+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="479" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhOlwZrSDAKgdsvwNRbak-UhEFsoOkKHJkAvLpZA2Fj5-CFxeS-hr56aMlVQbSmy_-5_BJDhW7Z_Qud62aqs5HTFAZIH3DOdkcmUiPoR8ry7-gWNF0RIh9X0wIcpUekShxyl2GstFqo1T/s640/IMG_1637+-+Copy.JPG" width="512" /></a></div>
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I'll be able to post photos when I post again.<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-1258158664013677212018-08-24T13:03:00.000-04:002018-08-24T13:03:56.419-04:00Binding Off in the RoundI've been busy getting the Winter 2018 issue organized. August is a difficult month to try and order yarn. Between vacations and fiber festivals it can take quite a few emails to get the designers their yarn. I spent a lot of time sitting at my computer. We have 23 projects in the next issue. That is quite a bit of yarn! Some are still waiting for while someone (you know who you are, Carolyn) has already sent her project!<br />
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I did take time to prepare my handouts for the retreat at the end of September. I'm teaching at Suzanne Bryan's guild's annual retreat. I'm looking forward to it as Charles Gandy is the other teacher and it will be wonderful to catch up with him.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Student News</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My students definitely are leading more exciting lives that me! I have received very few lessons to review. I know fall is approaching as more are signing up for classes. The minute the leaves start to fall we all think about our knitting!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Tip of the Week</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This week's tip was prompted by something the students at the retreat wanted covered. I'm always happy to customize what I teach. They wanted to know how to do a circular knitting join. I've already discussed this in a previous blog entry (</span><a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2014/08/joining-in-round.html"><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Joining in the Round</b></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">). What I didn't discuss in that entry was how to end a piece when knitting in the round.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This photograph shows what a circular piece looks like when you bind off. When you work in the round there will always be a jog at the end which is quite unattractive. Before you cut the yarn and pull it through, you can knit into the first stitch and work another bind off stitch but it almost always leaves a bit of a hole.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIfz4_vZ4RlphfCjtAprYPEVyL4NCu7rX64Rwcto84JHeL5sDsVgf0TEEznFE4slE2-HoNig2UrH6TTlbR_rCyaHDeLPvD5LiKXjN54dDwSZj5Q3TTmQjRnL23LBYvTk3Eseb8qYIO2C2J/s1600/Photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="480" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIfz4_vZ4RlphfCjtAprYPEVyL4NCu7rX64Rwcto84JHeL5sDsVgf0TEEznFE4slE2-HoNig2UrH6TTlbR_rCyaHDeLPvD5LiKXjN54dDwSZj5Q3TTmQjRnL23LBYvTk3Eseb8qYIO2C2J/s400/Photo+1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The best way to finish this requires a small bit of embroidery. Thread the yarn tail onto a tapestry needle and insert the needle under the two bind off loops of the first stitch.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqY2e53oR2y2PLc7OCZERjGlx7IuDlgqXFsEISoKikaYEbHS49dox8NTns7aW47i0KZ8CIIrFwv80JsO3KRftqh-RXoX4ggOmvEvakMNzPPWI0ojaXaQ5ynF0bEcp-WzMW6hU10SBEHznV/s1600/Photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="480" height="381" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqY2e53oR2y2PLc7OCZERjGlx7IuDlgqXFsEISoKikaYEbHS49dox8NTns7aW47i0KZ8CIIrFwv80JsO3KRftqh-RXoX4ggOmvEvakMNzPPWI0ojaXaQ5ynF0bEcp-WzMW6hU10SBEHznV/s400/Photo+2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Then insert the needle into the center of the last bind off stitch. If you look at the photo below you can see that I've pulled the yarn fairly tight to match the size of the loops of the surrounding bind off stitches. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDcgm_QdIAdRjEUPs7Nss9JxDUnm93nx0GkN4XGIq15WMooN_o4Y6r7YLQsLs9jSF608j2rmpgGM0PRXTlx0QEIskdw9r_MTbfkmfpPCVZLV-ADaAzMnLLOkxH71IHEZhB-jCINDTka7G2/s1600/photo+2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="480" height="365" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDcgm_QdIAdRjEUPs7Nss9JxDUnm93nx0GkN4XGIq15WMooN_o4Y6r7YLQsLs9jSF608j2rmpgGM0PRXTlx0QEIskdw9r_MTbfkmfpPCVZLV-ADaAzMnLLOkxH71IHEZhB-jCINDTka7G2/s400/photo+2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Adjust the yarn tail so that the other loop matches. Here is the photo of the completed bind off.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAbuaUopifQfkFbvVytKYa0236pAIt-IooJRFSTTf2BGriHK58FYD1MeONES0FFbOFEi62l0BtLnlwwW695xLTCmjAVCbySU6uiDOiGyI8qoeAVCcr5PGoKQNhLZIwaQJaPl-mX_CtXXqb/s1600/Photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAbuaUopifQfkFbvVytKYa0236pAIt-IooJRFSTTf2BGriHK58FYD1MeONES0FFbOFEi62l0BtLnlwwW695xLTCmjAVCbySU6uiDOiGyI8qoeAVCcr5PGoKQNhLZIwaQJaPl-mX_CtXXqb/s400/Photo+3.JPG" width="342" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now all you have to do is weave in the tail and the join is pretty much invisible. Here is the link to the video: </span><a href="https://youtu.be/0wv17ETeuSU"><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Circular knitting bind off</b></span></a><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Salon will be on Sunday, August 26 from 2-4 pm.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Current Projects</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">One of my favorite baristas at Starbucks recently had a baby girl. She has two sons. I wanted to make something for the baby but I wanted to make presents for the big brothers as well. I made a hat in a lovely pale pink from Spud & Chloe but I neglected to take a photo of it. Here is one of the brother hats. I used Berroco Ultra Alpaca for them. The photo shows it in progress where I have used dental elastics to mark decreases and cable crossing. Naturally I put small pompoms at the top as well. My friend Jan says they look like Gnome hats. I'm going to write the pattern up for the Winter issue as they are a very quick knit.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0unZkU7NaqcLpQh6Tm942tKeTUtKmEvx1v1EQHnIkTzFn820wEo248BQcPJbLije21EAcYMc724UoXHB2fiK1vvzCALxtS371oB7b313kUZsMybap3FIUr5AMtqmpl1OdTZ0OBciknMoX/s1600/Gnome+hat.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="586" data-original-width="353" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0unZkU7NaqcLpQh6Tm942tKeTUtKmEvx1v1EQHnIkTzFn820wEo248BQcPJbLije21EAcYMc724UoXHB2fiK1vvzCALxtS371oB7b313kUZsMybap3FIUr5AMtqmpl1OdTZ0OBciknMoX/s640/Gnome+hat.JPG" width="385" /></a></div>
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I also finally got to Martha's birthday present. I forgot to photograph them as well but Martha kindly obliged. What the photo doesn't show is how wonderful this yarn is. I picked up a couple of skeins at the DFW Fiber Festival. It is a local dyer, A Thing for String, and it is a Yak blend. Donna Estin used the yarn for a sweater in the Fall Cast On. I've got another skein and I'm going to keep the socks for me.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFm2dSeMMZ0MvHvVJzYPZ3saXirN02__Vofs1Hg42OPzgpLC0g58R8oE6i90SSFW1gKRcoCNKBWHlK-gIU4uUdRKVt6M4Ol3mbC_hnpSAxd17lUNjb1lEIrBmjQuI04ZBTRDh2SpOJJ1i9/s1600/socks+001.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFm2dSeMMZ0MvHvVJzYPZ3saXirN02__Vofs1Hg42OPzgpLC0g58R8oE6i90SSFW1gKRcoCNKBWHlK-gIU4uUdRKVt6M4Ol3mbC_hnpSAxd17lUNjb1lEIrBmjQuI04ZBTRDh2SpOJJ1i9/s400/socks+001.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I signed on to doing the Stitch Anatomy lesson for the Winter issue. I can't say I like intarsia so I didn't want to do a complicated project. I came with this kid's sweater. This is the 12 month size. I did it in colors I like to describe as the Hudson Bay Blanket palette.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9uycB0a1soZbPW0GjsLjdpopXaK2tZTeecpG9lrKl3zfAoDDk5hQTkbIw5iGDZhJ9a7zGBv0iMwOGWHOJs0mMSCrBbzHxOVfA2H4DKHi-epBGlKU7QaOnJdlpwGXm7_otmkVEvr7rr6Xx/s1600/Sweater+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="332" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9uycB0a1soZbPW0GjsLjdpopXaK2tZTeecpG9lrKl3zfAoDDk5hQTkbIw5iGDZhJ9a7zGBv0iMwOGWHOJs0mMSCrBbzHxOVfA2H4DKHi-epBGlKU7QaOnJdlpwGXm7_otmkVEvr7rr6Xx/s320/Sweater+1.JPG" width="281" /></a></div>
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I decided to do a larger size in a more subdued palette. This photo doesn't do the colors justice but the background is more of an oatmeal color. I choose Universal Deluxe Worsted as they have a lovely color selection and because Amy Gunderson is wonderful to work with. It seems like I order the yarn and it delivered the next day. Obviously I am going to have lots left over so I am going to use it for the Gnome hats.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGUZgt7wHydDLP0nYrz6hrmcRP0Ca59lB0j1JeX4BhWy14TIul9Ipww11qCP6AehjaEeza_0FVKOJI9r2Pf2A3O3qkNxwvSKGqu92iQdQq-3bsN39LWsoPSFdO5WpgTRLnK617yu6GJd8Z/s1600/Sweater+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="479" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGUZgt7wHydDLP0nYrz6hrmcRP0Ca59lB0j1JeX4BhWy14TIul9Ipww11qCP6AehjaEeza_0FVKOJI9r2Pf2A3O3qkNxwvSKGqu92iQdQq-3bsN39LWsoPSFdO5WpgTRLnK617yu6GJd8Z/s320/Sweater+2.JPG" width="285" /></a></div>
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I got a package from Shibui two days ago. (Again, a wonderful company to work with). I'm going to redo a<a href="https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wasp-wing-cardigan"><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> sweater</b></span></a> I did back in 2009. The yarn, Louet KidLin, has been discontinued so I'm going to use Shibui's Silk Cloud and Reed to get a similar effect. I'm going to make it longer as well. Since I've almost finished the intarsia sweater I'll swatch soon.Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-38871237147045194692018-08-03T12:13:00.002-04:002018-08-03T12:13:58.260-04:00Knit Stitches Next to Purls<br />
I am horrified that it has been 2 months since my last post. My main excuse is shown under the section Current Projects. More about that later but TNNA and Cast On haven't helped.<br />
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I haven't had a photo of George since my sweet Petipa has been gone. He is doing very well. In fact, he is a different cat. I guess he was meant to be an only child. I always thought he was food motivated. No, he was motivated to make Petipa miserable. He has lost a ton of weight and it isn't from grief. He is very self-satisfied.<br />
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I've spent the past couple of weeks putting in 12-18 hour days on the Fall issue of Cast On. Sharon, the tech editor and I are the only staff and it is a lot of work. The photo shoot was two weeks ago and as soon as I get them, the magazine will go live. If you are a member, you will get an email when that happens. I used the time to put together indices for some of the regular features, primarily for those going through the Masters Program. <br />
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If you are a member and if you are signed in these links will take you to the indices. There is a lot of good educational material there.<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://tkga.org/article/knitting-911-and-finishing-with-confidence-index/"><span style="color: red;">Knitting 911 and Finishing with Confidence</span></a> </span> </span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://tkga.org/article/fashion-framework-and-stitch-anatomy-index/"><span style="color: red;">Fashion Framework and Stitch Anatomy</span></a></span><br />
<a href="http://tkga.org/article/masters-index/"><span style="color: red;">On Your Way to the Masters</span></a><br />
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Knitting 911 is a series by Binka Schwan that has instructions for fixing common mistakes. Finishing with Confidence is a series by me that covers all major topics in Finishing. The Fashion Framework and Stitch Anatomy series which began in 2009 discusses specific types of garments and individual stitch patterns. The On Your Way series is applicable to those doing the Masters Program or really anyone interested in improving their work.<br />
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It has been VERY slow. Knitting has definitely taken a back seat to everything else! Things tend to pick up in the fall...not surprising!<br />
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Something I see in lots of lessons have the same cause. Ribbing, cables, seed stitch type of patterns all can be improved by a very simple thing. The next time you are working on a stitch pattern where you have knit and purl stitches together, look closely when you bring the yarn forward to make the purl. I think you will see that you don't bring the yarn completely forward. This excess yarn generally does one of two things...it works its way back into the previous knit stitch making it oversize or it leaves a ladder between the knit and purl. This causes K2P2 ribbing to look very sloppy where one column of stitches larger than the column to the right. It causes K1P1 ribbing to be overlarge (compare the size of the knit stitches in the ribbing to knit stitches above the ribbing and you will see what I mean. It causes ladders to the left of cables and seed stitch to look lacy rather than dense. </div>
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In the photo below the ribbing isn't stretched. The arrow points to a column where the stitches are distorted due to the excess yarn.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXi5mrCLWKo2zIANnNcjNlZuujb82gvBmIlkPpQHDO-VlHZVKzBeZDiHMXD-Aw2BLXNhE-J2SpopLB2bjkNRVsf3SW2HHqd1mU1TrnJ6omVhpx30CsUbai1mNc64TKPCJXzO5W_Zb6oQig/s1600/IMG_1582_LI.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXi5mrCLWKo2zIANnNcjNlZuujb82gvBmIlkPpQHDO-VlHZVKzBeZDiHMXD-Aw2BLXNhE-J2SpopLB2bjkNRVsf3SW2HHqd1mU1TrnJ6omVhpx30CsUbai1mNc64TKPCJXzO5W_Zb6oQig/s320/IMG_1582_LI.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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In the photo below the ribbing is stretched. The arrow at the bottom shows where the yarn was not brought completely forward. Notice the ladders on the right side of the purl column and that there are no ladders on the left side of the purl. It is easier to bring the yarn to the back when going from a purl to a knit. The arrow at the top shows two rows where the yarn was brought completely forward. No ladders.</div>
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Here is a caveat. I was teaching and a student told me this did not work and demonstrated for me what she was doing. She was not bringing the yarn forward. She was yanking it forward and then giving another really hard pull. This just pulls the yarn from the previous stitches and causes an even bigger tension issue.</div>
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In a lot of ways I am a lazy knitter. I hate having to change needles sizes because chances are I will forget to change back and I wind up having to rip out a few rows. I rarely drop down a size or two or ribbing. I get bring the yarn forward to eliminate the ladders. Guess what? Dropping down needle sizes doesn't get rid of ladders. It just makes them slightly shorted.</div>
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Here is a video of this technique: <span style="color: red;"><a href="https://youtu.be/-hAy7nCzqPU">Knit Stitch to Purl Stitch</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Knitting Salon</b></span></h3>
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I'm not sure I will be having Salon this weekend. I hope to be putting the finishing touches on the Fall issue.</div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Current Projects</span></h3>
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This sweater called Bird Lover totally took over my Summer. The gauge for 4" is 44 stitches. That was doable but ripping out 10" didn't help either. I did finish it two days before the photo shoot. The birds can be hard to see but they are there.</div>
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They are easier to see in this closeup.<br />
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Of course I used RedFish Dyework yarns and as soon as I have uploaded the photographs to the magazine the sweater will go to them for the shows they will be doing. (I will be getting it back. I just let these sweaters visit Elff and Sandy since they put together kits for the sweaters.) What these photos can't show is how soft and wonderful the drape of this stranded sweater. They are heavenly to wear. I did finish up the Big Boy sweater to match the baby one I did back in May. They turned out quite nice. </div>
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Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-81860263935718491362018-06-01T17:35:00.002-04:002019-03-18T21:13:14.247-04:00Binding Off<br />
I was out of town last week and have been trying to catch up on what didn't get done. It is always a bit of problem getting yarn to the designers for the Fall issue of the magazines. It can take quite a bit of time to get everyone their yarn.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">STUDENT NEWS</span></b><br />
Summertime...things really slow down! I've only received a few lessons. I've mentioned before that I send back lessons using the first class rate. This allows me to keep the cost of the course the same. If you want your work back sooner, you can include a prepaid Priority mail envelope. Again, when you send your lesson I would appreciate a heads up with a tracking number so if there is a problem I can let you know.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">TIP OF THE WEEK</span></b><br />
This week's tip was suggested by Binka Schwan who write the "Skill Building" articles for Cast On. The next issue's article is about evenly binding off. Binka let me know that I've never done this topic, binding off in pattern, yes. Since this is something I evaluate in the Basics course it was an excellent suggestion.<br />
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This topic makes me think of Goldilocks and the Three Bears....Bind offs can be too loose, too tight and just right as the following three photos show.<br />
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To get an even bind off, make sure that you are working the stitches on the barrel of the yarn, not the tips and to take care how you tension the yarn. If you pull too tight, you will get a strangled bind off that pulls in the top of the piece (picture this type of bind off on a shoulder seam!). If you don't control your tension at all you might wind up with a really loose bind off. I sometimes recommend using larger or smaller needles for the bind off row but it is far better just to work on achieving an even bind off with the project needles. It spares you from having to carry around a full range of needle sizes.</div>
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While we are on the topic of bind offs....look at the top photos and then at the last photo and compare the size of the last bind off stitch. I made no effort on the first swatch and on the last swatch I used a suggestion from Suzanne Bryan. I mentioned this in my last post but here is the link: <b><a href="http://www.knittingsuzanne.com/finessing-your-knitting/enlarged-last-bo-stitch/" style="color: red;">Last BO Stitch</a><span style="color: red;">. </span> </b>I wrapped the second stitch the wrong way on the row before the bind off. This works great if you can remember to do it!</div>
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Here is my video on binding off: <a href="https://youtu.be/7jmTe9JnLrE"><span style="color: red;"><b>Evenly Binding Off</b></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span></div>
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Salon will be on Sunday (June 3rd) from 2-4pm.</div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span></div>
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Since the topic of the Stitch Anatomy lesson in the Fall 2018 issue will be Bavarian stitch I decided to do a baby sweater. God forbid I do something sensible working it in the round. No, I'd rather do it flat which requires much more concentration. The baby sweater is done. I'm going to have to put tissue paper in the arms for the photo shoot as I made it a bit big.</div>
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Now I'm working on the Size 6. It is going much faster...</div>
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I took the time to work on my Blackbird sweater chart. (This isn't the final chart. I've made some changes.) </div>
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Elff sent the yarn and I did a small swatch to check out the colors. We've done some small adjustments as some of the colors didn't have enough contrast. I can't wait to get started!</div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-48078450626555800612018-05-11T16:43:00.003-04:002018-05-11T16:43:58.966-04:00Recognizing Tension IssuesThis will be a fairly short entry. I'm right in the middle of ordering yarn for the designers of the next issue of Cast On. It takes much more effort than you would think. The Summer issue of Cast On went live on May 5th and the 7th was the deadline for proposals for the Fall. It really is a bit of a merry-go-round.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
I received very few lessons to review which was actually a good thing. It takes quite a bit to get the magazine out. Send them in now! I have will lots of time next week to review lessons.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
The tip this week was prompted by something I saw in two very well know knitting publications last week. Cast On is different in many ways from other knitting publications since we are the sponsors of the Master Hand Knitting Program that certifies Master Knitters. The standards by which we evaluate candidates' work is very stringent and for that reason we have to be careful about the garments we have in Cast On, particularly as regards tension and finishing. If something slips by, we will hear about it from our members who require to develop a critical eye towards their own work. If you don't know that something can be better, you can't fix it.<br />
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In the magazines I was reviewing I noticed two sweaters that had very poor stockinette tension. Both sweaters had reverse stockinette on the RS and there were clear gutters. Not only is it unattractive, it can effect row gauge adversely. <br />
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If you aren't sure what poor stockinette looks like, examine the photographs below.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKsR3S-uFj3Msiey7cHYgom14c5u7OMTGUoRMQCQy38NNOhDbmExJViEoJ27ovacoLvyJLQjDkT93_wmW2U7f-j7wPzoJGI5NAhMtAAqsMY2PtyAm_j4Du_fjjtvLVg5FHGfQf83t4Olt/s1600/Swatch1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1300" data-original-width="1333" height="624" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKsR3S-uFj3Msiey7cHYgom14c5u7OMTGUoRMQCQy38NNOhDbmExJViEoJ27ovacoLvyJLQjDkT93_wmW2U7f-j7wPzoJGI5NAhMtAAqsMY2PtyAm_j4Du_fjjtvLVg5FHGfQf83t4Olt/s640/Swatch1.jpeg" width="640" /></a><br />
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This photo shows the WS. Notice the very distinct gutters. Imagine a cabled sweater with the filler stitches looking like this. Ick. This swatch also has another very common problem. One side is much longer than the other. This happens when the tension problem is worse at the selvedge.<br />
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By the way, the photo above and the next photo were lent to me by Binka Schwan. She is the instructor of the Taming Tension class offered by TKGA and she is a miracle worker. She not only helps her students with this type of problem but also ribbing, seed, etc.<br />
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This photo shows the RS of the same swatch. Notice how the size of the stitches vary from row to row.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3MA6EYgeo3LH0Ko0XGS2C6rkH8Tvx9f54hJVxocL-zjKwx8Mmho6KIf3f5HCzW89KmHgmKJstnq-tF41q3a_zpuoNkF12P_G1ByRev5xjq8wMRh5AD2OR15Ck8gynmNDMcpmMDSbegLK/s1600/swatch2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1345" data-original-width="1361" height="630" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3MA6EYgeo3LH0Ko0XGS2C6rkH8Tvx9f54hJVxocL-zjKwx8Mmho6KIf3f5HCzW89KmHgmKJstnq-tF41q3a_zpuoNkF12P_G1ByRev5xjq8wMRh5AD2OR15Ck8gynmNDMcpmMDSbegLK/s640/swatch2.jpeg" width="640" /></a><br />
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What causes this problem? For the vast majority of knitters, they purl looser than they knit. I see it much more in the work of Continental knitters or knitters that work primarily in the round. I tell my Basics students, they don't need to tell me how they knit. I generally can figure it out. Many knitters have just a tension issue at the selvedges. One fix you can try for that is to begin each row a little tighter & end each row a bit looser. It will take some practice.<br />
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Every knitter has tension problems at times. Some yarns are more prone. Generally inelastic yarns, like cotton and linen are more prone to tension issues.<br />
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If you have a tension issue and can't solve it, you can use darker yarns which hide the problem, particularly on the stockinette side and avoid patterns which have reverse stockinette on the RS side. If you are doing the Masters Program, this is something you have to fix before you progress any further.<br />
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I'm not going to give any further tips for fixing tension or do a video. Fixing tension might require trying several different methods and a lot of practice. If you are a TKGA member, I can recommend Binka's class. As I said, she is a miracle worker. I can also recommend looking at some blog entries from a former Co-Chair of the Masters Committee. Suzanne Bryan is a very analytical knitter: <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.knittingsuzanne.com/finessing-your-knitting/so-you-have-ridges-you-say/"><span style="color: red;">Suzanne Bryan, ridges</span></a> </span>and <a href="http://www.knittingsuzanne.com/finessing-your-knitting/so-you-have-ridges-you-say/"><span style="color: red;">Suzanne Bryan: Enlarged BO stitch</span></a><br />
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Once you realize what good tension looks like, you will find yourself looking at knitting magazines in a different way!<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be this Sunday from 1:30 - 3:20.<br />
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<b style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CURRENT PROJECTS</b><br />
I'm still waiting for yarn for my Cast On projects. I finished the socks with the yarn left over form the Tea Roses, just time for warm weather! <br />
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I then made a very long infinity scarf...500 yds of Zen Garden Serenity Silk. I used the whole skein. The stitch pattern is one of those elongated stitch patterns. I like it.<br />
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Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-1036318732939128582018-04-27T18:22:00.003-04:002018-04-27T18:22:59.754-04:00Placing Increases and DecreasesI had to euthanize my darling, blind Petipa on April 13th. She was close to 19 years old and she had a very good run. We miss her terribly. We thought George would be upset as his day (when he wasn't sleeping) was devoted to knowing what she was up to. Not the case. He is acting like the king of the castle. Requiescat in pace, Petipa. (Glad to know a classical education comes in handy.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMMIUIAV7sDOqiEM8L9y4U-Sef6mfyxhOoMYAQfwIEAHapFM97IV7tg8_pXGCID4pnYLV52Lin5GB2Is1FZHJe_jub8-TSXWYVhY7y0fikBhQTCnxRNeAL8M_3Bo6r2FixdHzDWmBWMYU/s1600/petipa+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="609" data-original-width="395" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMMIUIAV7sDOqiEM8L9y4U-Sef6mfyxhOoMYAQfwIEAHapFM97IV7tg8_pXGCID4pnYLV52Lin5GB2Is1FZHJe_jub8-TSXWYVhY7y0fikBhQTCnxRNeAL8M_3Bo6r2FixdHzDWmBWMYU/s320/petipa+%25282%2529.JPG" width="205" /></a></div>
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I've spent the past two weeks working on the Summer 2018 issue of Cast On. I've uploaded all of the patterns and articles to the platform but it won't go live until I add the photographs. The photographer had a family health emergency but she hopes to get them to me this weekend. All of the hard work is done. <br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
Just a reminder...when you send your lessons make sure they can be tracked. Not only can you track priority packages, tracking is free for first class packages as well if you take them to the post office. If you don't track them, we will have no way of finding it. I've had very good luck with tracking lately. I always track every package I send.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
The final project for the Finishing Class is to knit a sweater and finish it. I provide a pattern for a doll sweater which doesn't require much knitting which most students use. I've noticed that a few students have problems picking up stitches along the neckline since they did not place the decreases properly. I do emphasize where to place increases and decreases in the Reference materials but somehow it gets missed in the final project.<br />
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Anyone who has ever sewn knows that patterns always add 5/8" for the seam allowance. Knitting requires the same thing if the project will be seamed or has any type of band. That is what the selvedge stitches are for. You use the horizontal bars between the selvedge stitch and the next stitch in for the seam. You use the spaces between the horizontal bars to pick up stitches for bands. If you work a decrease or increase in the first or last stitch, you've just made proper finishing impossible. I blame patterns. Most say something like "Dec 1 at beg of next 4 rows." Unless you know better you would assume this means "beg" means just that, not 1 or 2 stitches in. <br />
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The majority of students who take the finishing class say they are taking it since they hate finishing. If you don't know what you are doing and you get poor results, you will definitely hate doing it.<br />
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If you are seaming the inside of a sleeve where you have placed increases in the first stitches, the seam will be ugly but who is going to notice? If you screw up the neckline you will never want to wear the sweater. Every time you look in the mirror you will be reminded that you don't know how to finish. <br />
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<b>Increases</b>--If you are using M1 increases you don't need to worry. It is impossible to work them in the first stitch. You have to use the horizontal bar between the selvedge stitch and the next stitch. Lifted increases don't really work either. When you try to work a right slanting increase in the selvedge stitch it just slips off the needle. Yes, you can work a left slanting increase at the right side and a right slanting increase at the left side but it is unlikely that a novice knitter would choose these increases. The increase that most novice knitters would pick is the Bar or kfb increase. If you look at the photo, look at the bottom two increases. The ones on the right side sort of blend in but the ones on the left just make the selvedge edge bumpy. (By the way, if a project isn't going to be seamed, yes, you can use this increase at the beginning of a row. I've seen lots of shawls do just this.) I just used bar increases to make the leaves on the First Saturday dresses. I found that at the left side, if I didn't want an ugly edge, I had to work the bar increase in the stitch before the selvedge.<br />
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The increases at the top are worked with one stitch before and after the selvedge. This provides a seam allowance.</div>
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<b>Decreases--</b>This is the one that causes problems in necklines. In the photograph below the decreases at the bottom are worked in the selvedges. There is no way to seam the edges or pick up stitches. It will just look awful unless the yarn is really dark, heathered or tweedy. The decreases at the top are worked so that the edge can be properly finished.</div>
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Again, this applies only to garments where the edge will be finished. Here is a link to the video: <b><a href="https://youtu.be/BfZ5tUkg9TY" style="color: red;">Placing Increases and Decreases</a>.</b><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30 to 3:20. <br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
I have had very little time to knit. Putting Cast On together requires a lot of time. I am using the pink Savannah yarn left over from the roses for the First Saturday dresses to make a pair of socks. By the way, next Saturday is the First Saturday, Derby Day. <br />
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I did spend some time charting a design for a sweater for the Fall 2018 issue. The name will be Blackbird Singing and I'll be using RedFish yarns. Elff is working on the colors. I'm thinking of doing a baby sweater with a Bavarian design. I did a sweater as a baby gift 10 years ago. I never wrote a pattern for it. I'll do something similar. Here is the link to the Ravelry project: <b><a href="https://www.ravelry.com/projects/arendje/sweater-for-franklin" style="color: red;">Franklin's Sweater</a>.</b><br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-65138876381371443592018-04-13T13:17:00.000-04:002018-04-13T13:17:14.543-04:00Purlside Double DecreasesLast week was the DFW Fiber Fest in Dallas. We held a Masters Day which was quite successful. The meeting is a very nice one and the market is curated...no drek. Unfortunately I had a bad cold so I wasn't able to have as much fun as I would have liked--maybe next year.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">STUDENT NEWS</span></b><br />
I've received a few lessons but things have slowed down. Keep the lessons coming!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">TIP OF THE WEEK</span></b><br />
This tip is prompted by things I've encountered in my projects for Cast On. I checked the index for my blog to remind myself how to work the CDD (S2 k1 psso) decrease on the purlside for the leaves for the dresses (see photos below) and I discovered I had not included it with the other purlside decreases I'd done before. Also, I'm writing the Learn Something New article for the Summer Cast On which is about working single-row stripes while working flat without all of the yarn tails. This technique is also especially useful for adding a new skein with kettle dyed yarns. When you use this technique you might find yourself having to work decreases or increases on WS rows.<br />
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I researched this a bit to see if there was an easier way than I knew. Nope. <br />
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In the photograph below the decreases labelled A and B are worked on the RS of the row. A is the CDD or Central Double Decrease. Notice that the center stitch is on top of the stitches to the right and left. This decrease is used most in lace, mitred work and V-neck bands. To work it on the RS, you slip the first two stitches to the right needle as if you were going to knit them together (never separately). You knit the next stitch, then you pass the two stitches over the stitch you just knit. It is a bit more complicated to work it on the WS. It is a four-step operation. First you slip the the first two stitches, one at a time, knitwise and return them to the left needle (this changes the stitch orientation in preparation for the next step). The second step is to insert the right needle into these two stitches from the back (as you would for an SSP decrease). The third step is to transfer these two stitches back to the left needle (note that this repositions the stitches). The final step is to purl the three stitches together. If you look at the decrease labeled as "C" it is identical to "A".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxgnQQ1QM82DUNV8uz9lhnLKI3AV426z_-E9GMbj6O7qYvSIHGCxA8JX33v32FOc8jIgOMi3-wS3YeQ9IxHyjM9WN7iiTbPjBgFhqNkx0fX_Fu0iqhgmN_68zq4MAgCYJkcDh3qHcC8bK/s1600/swatchlabeled.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="402" data-original-width="399" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxgnQQ1QM82DUNV8uz9lhnLKI3AV426z_-E9GMbj6O7qYvSIHGCxA8JX33v32FOc8jIgOMi3-wS3YeQ9IxHyjM9WN7iiTbPjBgFhqNkx0fX_Fu0iqhgmN_68zq4MAgCYJkcDh3qHcC8bK/s400/swatchlabeled.JPG" width="396" /></a></div>
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The decreases labeled "B" and "D" are identical as well. Notice that for these decreases, the center stitch is underneath the stitches to the right and left. This decrease is most often used in lace. To work it on the RS, slip the first stitch knitwise, knit the next two stitches together and then pass the slipped stitch over the two stitches just knit. To work it on the WS, purl the first two stitches together, slip the next stitch knitwise and return it to the left needle, return the stitch you created by purling the two stitches together to the left needle and pass the slipped stitch over that stitch.<br />
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The video demonstrates both of these decreases: <a href="https://youtu.be/JlPuDUNDuwM"><span style="color: red;">Purlside Double Decreases</span></a><br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">KNITTING SALON</span></b><br />
I won't be having salon this week since I'm going to the Met HD production of Luisa Miller on Saturday and Sunday is the photo shoot for Cast On. <br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CURRENT PROJECTS</span></b><br />
I finished everything up for the photo shoot with a few days to spare. Here are the socks (the color is absolutely wrong. They are golden.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcdV9vxYj7E9akRsOd3oH8hy8gSk7LIjOIpLjpgtnmSVeLu7j3r8K3h6l5366SznwWwmvEcMCXs4gVt6tlVUSlFltwpNEoaaZsRCWu5jXxMDmucwwzCG-EQP-rINkCsxokWqq4ka-X_Dm/s1600/Socks.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="441" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcdV9vxYj7E9akRsOd3oH8hy8gSk7LIjOIpLjpgtnmSVeLu7j3r8K3h6l5366SznwWwmvEcMCXs4gVt6tlVUSlFltwpNEoaaZsRCWu5jXxMDmucwwzCG-EQP-rINkCsxokWqq4ka-X_Dm/s400/Socks.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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The project to go with the Learn Something New is a striped sweater I'm calling Fishing in France. It was a very quick knit.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN9YUvztn7ogNFvdjVG1q9npig2HxoHnqrNDYMNHkeRe7GsjiDRktQBHaShJoG6jakZKHH3gRBtqzwTce0M_chOSdH5y3w6w0EWnpuiLi0nqfERsBqafzGU_AsvmUNXis3xDKTQ_4_rY58/s1600/fishing+in+france.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="432" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN9YUvztn7ogNFvdjVG1q9npig2HxoHnqrNDYMNHkeRe7GsjiDRktQBHaShJoG6jakZKHH3gRBtqzwTce0M_chOSdH5y3w6w0EWnpuiLi0nqfERsBqafzGU_AsvmUNXis3xDKTQ_4_rY58/s400/fishing+in+france.JPG" width="388" /></a></div>
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Here are photos of the dresses with close ups of the roses.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjexIWcdgDHUaXp1ckj6aB-HiFZ9OUJMXIuRKKLOIMSZJgWziu6zT0xL0UncVdfht0UjPYllGH5fHQZwKV8Dw3jY7e7LvpOu9khm0kYnaJeleWiUTlSYvjR2JMnHPkLaer5xyl0Sb8ClbPJ/s1600/back2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="219" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjexIWcdgDHUaXp1ckj6aB-HiFZ9OUJMXIuRKKLOIMSZJgWziu6zT0xL0UncVdfht0UjPYllGH5fHQZwKV8Dw3jY7e7LvpOu9khm0kYnaJeleWiUTlSYvjR2JMnHPkLaer5xyl0Sb8ClbPJ/s400/back2.JPG" width="188" /></a></div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-66150290148549454992018-03-23T14:58:00.002-04:002018-03-23T14:58:33.784-04:00Masters Program Notebooks<br />
All I've been doing is knitting like mad to get things finished for the photo shoot. It will be close but I think I'll make it.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
A word about how I mail things...To keep the cost of the course the same, I send back swatches in a large plain white envelope after each lesson by the USPS using First Class rates. This is the least expensive but you can track the envelopes. (For Non-US students, I hang onto the swatches and send them back when the course is complete.) I have only had one lesson out of hundreds lost and one damaged. Periodically due to weather or the holidays a lesson might take a while to get there, but so far every one has arrived. If you would like your lessons sent back by priority mail, include the postage and I'll be happy to return it to you that way.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
This week's tip is a departure. Many of my Basics students take the course to see if they might want to to the Masters Program. It covers many of the same techniques as Level 1 and it give the students a feel for what it is like to have your work evaluated by a stranger. (My Basics course is divided into three lessons while the Masters work is sent in when the whole thing is complete.) This evaluation process can be very stressful. All of the reviewers have been through the process. The evaluations are very detailed but they focus on ways to fix issues. <br />
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Each level requires that the work be organized into a notebook and the instructions are very specific as to how to organize the notebook. There are two reasons for this. All of the reviewers are volunteers and the evaluation can take as long as 10 or more hours. A poorly organized notebook can double that time. The other reason is that the ability to read and interpret directions is an important skill for a knitter. Many who complete the program go on to work in the industry and we want to make sure they have the skills they need to do accomplish their goals.<br />
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With all of that said, there have been lots of questions on the TKGA <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/groups/the-knitting-guild-association-tkga"><span style="color: red;"><b>Ravelry Group</b></span></a> on how to organize the notebook. People have different learning styles and I've often found a few photos can really help. Since the instructions have changed dramatically since I completed the program, I asked someone who recently completed Level 1 if we could show her notebook. (I've blocked her name and address with a Post It.)<br />
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We recommend you use a 3" ring binder for Level 1 (By the way, these instructions apply to US submissions. For non-US submissions, there is leeway on this). A 3" binder fits neatly into the USPS Medium Flat Rate box. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VDvytwiZXBPDhKNDEOKwrgd-DQAk-ItVyOn5_eEsvvXLQzBXgcVRp8E7Asm4nykMR5fbdC10k8zgeidPBMvOiY0-LkurwBpre-r5_WHkswaATf5p51TI1SO2TiuNOSnTBNbTTAT57hyphenhyphenA/s1600/IMG_1398.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="434" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VDvytwiZXBPDhKNDEOKwrgd-DQAk-ItVyOn5_eEsvvXLQzBXgcVRp8E7Asm4nykMR5fbdC10k8zgeidPBMvOiY0-LkurwBpre-r5_WHkswaATf5p51TI1SO2TiuNOSnTBNbTTAT57hyphenhyphenA/s320/IMG_1398.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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It should be organized into six sections separated by tabs: Blocking Report, Swatches, Gauge, Worksheets, Questions, Project and References. One of the most often asked questions is why the answers to the questions go in a separate section rather than with the swatches. (Most of the questions refer to specific swatches.) It is easier for the reviewers if they are in a separate section. Believe me, they have the questions memorized. <br />
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Each swatch should be placed in a page protector with the written information regarding that swatch. Below is an example of the Swatch Information Sheet (SIS) for the seed stitch swatch. If you staple sheets together or use paperclips, that will add to the review time. If there is a second sheet, it should be placed so that it is visible when the page is turned.<br />
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This is the project for Level 1. It also should be placed in the page protector along with the written information.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDsJJWqiJ6K_ewZbFf1fl7l6H2cLxetZfGZqBLrSnd31lLQMGOsmdYUELxhXPW0c8l1K9LaTCAaZ2WrnnWVCPZgfZh8UhLrKMecpW3k5B4-N8C3T56v_zdOz1P_-mi9lNF7Iyq4uuejnqn/s1600/IMG_1402.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="514" data-original-width="452" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDsJJWqiJ6K_ewZbFf1fl7l6H2cLxetZfGZqBLrSnd31lLQMGOsmdYUELxhXPW0c8l1K9LaTCAaZ2WrnnWVCPZgfZh8UhLrKMecpW3k5B4-N8C3T56v_zdOz1P_-mi9lNF7Iyq4uuejnqn/s640/IMG_1402.JPG" width="562" /></a></div>
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If you are working on Level 1, I suggest you watch the video I made showing the various sections in more detail. Yes, the notebook requirements may seem overly picky but this is a notebook you will have as a reference guide for years. You will come to appreciate the organization. Many of the requirements are to make the review process as streamlined as can be. All of the reviewers are volunteers and many have full time jobs. They give up time they could be knitting themselves to pass on what they have learned. Here is the video: <a href="https://youtu.be/y4X3JlQIRfE"><b><span style="color: red;">Master Hand Knitting Program Level 1 Notebook</span></b></a><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30-3:30.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
I finished the sweater FINALLY. I took the sleeves out twice.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgln-nKeeb9ArJ7TPgFaBngeVY1KCcqeDjwmTNmsYNkDwGEXVswe6kY-9iC0xJU1YnZaycUz-EXvng0HE4YpLKsufeXdKas7gkGoXX0dSkfcLPZKrSLAGDcj8ADRRy2LI7NvTsqIKiuxtVy/s1600/IMG_1406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="547" data-original-width="363" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgln-nKeeb9ArJ7TPgFaBngeVY1KCcqeDjwmTNmsYNkDwGEXVswe6kY-9iC0xJU1YnZaycUz-EXvng0HE4YpLKsufeXdKas7gkGoXX0dSkfcLPZKrSLAGDcj8ADRRy2LI7NvTsqIKiuxtVy/s640/IMG_1406.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
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Here is the back view. (I've kept waste yarn in the pleats. I hope I remember to take them out at the photo shoot!)<br />
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I've called it Baby Butterfly. Here is a close up of the stitch pattern.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHiUa7U3X07p0GHtzW-2TiJN63bimKC8DIw99bvWnx8w6aiBdXTeGHqOijXuF9PPb9U87TpbwPq4DtpF8u_M1C-o0bPogN8-_k9UBdLf5OoN5a7DyvzMiE2jBXfNDfs7C0raMKQjD-jpsB/s1600/IMG_1408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="479" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHiUa7U3X07p0GHtzW-2TiJN63bimKC8DIw99bvWnx8w6aiBdXTeGHqOijXuF9PPb9U87TpbwPq4DtpF8u_M1C-o0bPogN8-_k9UBdLf5OoN5a7DyvzMiE2jBXfNDfs7C0raMKQjD-jpsB/s320/IMG_1408.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The dress worked up very quickly. I still have all the markers in it as I use them to write the pattern. Here's the front. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrVxLGk8kU5oD7OFKGnruH0BNveHRbTjBT7Q2uZDMNArLwZLUir3aD6mhCaJP62Qr6sDNhEU_LEOhRKpY0sy1haH-QjbK0D0g3WPFQDmJQvc4Y6Hzffwch4DLJZQTwF8DTa63b2p5eWlxM/s1600/IMG_1403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="588" data-original-width="346" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrVxLGk8kU5oD7OFKGnruH0BNveHRbTjBT7Q2uZDMNArLwZLUir3aD6mhCaJP62Qr6sDNhEU_LEOhRKpY0sy1haH-QjbK0D0g3WPFQDmJQvc4Y6Hzffwch4DLJZQTwF8DTa63b2p5eWlxM/s640/IMG_1403.JPG" width="376" /></a></div>
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Here is the back.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3kY9_6rTCtcmO-G3O1anYzx30afaqpVBkks-gtuhRmRm1ltMEaqjasTD6N-xHiDXTz8WY2sY6lGZdegJ5pzCjpyQc88x_rLWpAy_JEu-9M5pcsnKXjBmVAV2by2IO7Wm5_qVxNLrnWkm/s1600/IMG_1404.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="593" data-original-width="373" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3kY9_6rTCtcmO-G3O1anYzx30afaqpVBkks-gtuhRmRm1ltMEaqjasTD6N-xHiDXTz8WY2sY6lGZdegJ5pzCjpyQc88x_rLWpAy_JEu-9M5pcsnKXjBmVAV2by2IO7Wm5_qVxNLrnWkm/s640/IMG_1404.JPG" width="402" /></a></div>
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I'm making a girl's dress that coordinates will the adult dress. A fitted dress looks pretty creepy on a kid so it is an empire waist. This is the back. (The front is blocking. I'll finish it tonight.) The dental elastics mark the decreases for the bodice and I use the safety pins to count the rows. Finishing is much easier if both pieces have the same number of rows.<br />
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Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-11623893907064822532018-03-02T17:12:00.000-05:002018-03-02T17:12:00.233-05:00Better Bar IncreasesAll of the designers finally got their yarn and are busy working on their designs, including me. I've got to pick up the pace if I am going to finish everything. My New Years Resolution was to write pattern as I go along and so far, so good.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
I've heard from quite a few students who have wanted the updates. Again, I'm willing to send off the materials to any former or current student. If you are working on Level 1 of the Masters, you may want to take a look as I've provided links to my blog on quite a few topics where you need sources.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
This week's tip is prompted by what I've been seeing in swatches I'm already getting for the revised materials. In the earlier version bar increases are only worked in ribbing. I added an extra credit swatch where they are worked at the sides of a swatch as you would for sleeves. A very common problem is that the knit stitch next to the bar is oversized. Look at the photograph below where I have placed a label to the left of 5 bar increases and compare<b><span style="color: #741b47;"> a</span></b> and<b><span style="color: #741b47;"> c </span></b>to<b><span style="color: #741b47;"> b</span></b>, <b><span style="color: #741b47;">d</span></b> and <b><span style="color: #4c1130;">e</span></b>. Notice that in <b><span style="color: #741b47;">a</span></b> and<b><span style="color: #741b47;"> c</span></b> the stitch next to the bar is closer in size to the stitches below and above. In <b><span style="color: #741b47;">b</span></b>, <b><span style="color: #741b47;">d</span></b> and <span style="color: #4c1130; font-weight: bold;">e </span>the stitch next to the bar is overlarge. They aren't very attractive and are far more noticeable. What causes this? When knit the stitch, if you do not tighten up a bit before you knit into the back of the stitch, the knit stitch gets overlarge. Now look at <b><span style="color: #741b47;">c</span></b>,<b><span style="color: #741b47;"> b</span></b>, <b><span style="color: #741b47;">d</span></b> and <b><span style="color: #4c1130;">e</span></b> and see how the stitch below the knit stitch to the right of the bar is pinched. It isn't as pinched for <b><span style="color: #741b47;">a</span></b>. Why? I stretched out the stitch when I knit into the back of the stitch. This made the stitch smaller. If you tighten up when making a bar increase AND use just your needle tips when knitting into the back of the stitch, you can produce a much better bar increase. When you are using this increase in ribbing it is not as noticeable.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisvQlsQB_wr5C74Z2-YkAhWkwDfuF-jSYMK0fMttK1_CqugaDUbZCFjALC3h-bZbHDi2rsQTQw8FW2-aEe2YA2LbmzeCvbcXY2aW0R3wb2j2KixR9kBRtETrhFtMIk6Cq7PrMDUgcNV6lM/s1600/IMG_1387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="422" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisvQlsQB_wr5C74Z2-YkAhWkwDfuF-jSYMK0fMttK1_CqugaDUbZCFjALC3h-bZbHDi2rsQTQw8FW2-aEe2YA2LbmzeCvbcXY2aW0R3wb2j2KixR9kBRtETrhFtMIk6Cq7PrMDUgcNV6lM/s400/IMG_1387.JPG" width="367" /></a></div>
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Here is the link to the video: <a href="https://youtu.be/QPbDR2JMYaM"><span style="color: red;">Better Bar Increases</span></a><br />
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I've heard from quite a few students who have wanted the updates. Again, I'm willing to send off the<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30 - 3:20. I'm really hoping I will have the sweater I've been working on finished by then. <br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
I've almost finished the Baby Butterfly Duster. If you look at the photo below you can see I'm working on the sleeves. When I work top-down short row sleeves I work one cap and then do the next sleeve to make sure they match. No, those aren't pom poms hanging off the sleeves but small yarn balls. There is a deep pleat in the back. Am I a lousy photographer! I guarantee this looks much better in person.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ERZf9SlVfu2lrTTlj3hoZvkI7VrLOQq4e98Wu5lwu-bEKOVZsEpoBMEhz6Jr5y-tOArS0VPuenUo2PdYoX-spapY7eI1NCQJKGTTasuDZ9UDBk2sTzMJgGU8G1tosJpcbhRYKei59Ph5/s1600/IMG_1383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="285" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ERZf9SlVfu2lrTTlj3hoZvkI7VrLOQq4e98Wu5lwu-bEKOVZsEpoBMEhz6Jr5y-tOArS0VPuenUo2PdYoX-spapY7eI1NCQJKGTTasuDZ9UDBk2sTzMJgGU8G1tosJpcbhRYKei59Ph5/s400/IMG_1383.JPG" width="236" /></a></div>
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I worked gauge swatches for the next projects while I was blocking the fronts. (I block the pieces before I put in the sleeves. I'll have to redo it after I get the sleeves in). The gray swatch is for a dress and the striped swatch is for a a French fisherman sweater to go with an article on single row stripes with circular needles. I tried out M1 increases near the top. I still haven't decided what increases to use. I have a bit of time to decide.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlCGhzK7ICfTCqDlYKcbzuIWUvctjxgyA2wUGpQEW_DY0xBh2twLIlT40puYJ6svwdvmNNo032R5SWV34qSI1Y3fe1KrYTT8cQwhlCDNd2fsvTrjW5eJ-vKW6i3prIXtm_Nx_BKd_MyDJq/s1600/IMG_1385.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="458" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlCGhzK7ICfTCqDlYKcbzuIWUvctjxgyA2wUGpQEW_DY0xBh2twLIlT40puYJ6svwdvmNNo032R5SWV34qSI1Y3fe1KrYTT8cQwhlCDNd2fsvTrjW5eJ-vKW6i3prIXtm_Nx_BKd_MyDJq/s400/IMG_1385.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDBsqjKQ7nHr0BaZTlisbxiWVKeHHmyM99VruiooULkrUOVQxn3oSRd4Pe0kY9rgCExhMV2NZsbVxZi1KndtKNGfz5jPeFxNjVj4jebi95X4BdgiCKsR9FYp-3IS5FtcqpXvLlDSwHSt9B/s1600/IMG_1386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="438" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDBsqjKQ7nHr0BaZTlisbxiWVKeHHmyM99VruiooULkrUOVQxn3oSRd4Pe0kY9rgCExhMV2NZsbVxZi1KndtKNGfz5jPeFxNjVj4jebi95X4BdgiCKsR9FYp-3IS5FtcqpXvLlDSwHSt9B/s400/IMG_1386.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-15582479883758838492018-02-16T12:27:00.001-05:002018-02-16T12:28:21.652-05:00Revisiting RibbingIt has been a busy couple of weeks getting the Summer Cast On lined up. Selecting the designs, contacting the yarn companies, getting contracts out, contacting yarn companies again, is quite a bit of work. Since I'm doing a couple of garments, I'm also trying to fit in some knitting.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
I managed to finish up the revisions to the Basics class. I did not make major changes but I added a few things to make it line up more closely with what is covered in the Master Program. I have included links to this blog for related topics which can save time for those putting together their references for Level 1. I've included working a preliminary swatch and a couple of extra credit items. I am HAPPY to send any former student the updated materials. Also, since I do not enforce time limits, if it has been a couple of years and you would like to continue or have any questions, just send me an email at aholladay@tkga.org.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
This topic was inspired by a thread in the TKGA Ravelry group on ribbing. A question that comes up frequently is if knitters can use smaller needles for the ribbing in Level 1. The answer is no. The reason for this is that most knitters' ribbing is very loose so dropping down a needle size or two can improve its appearance. In the Masters Program we focus on figuring out why something happens and then finding a better solution. Yes, using smaller needles will help with ribbing but the reason the ribbing looks bad also makes any knit/purl combination stitch pattern (like seed stitch) or cables look bad and going down a needle size doesn't help there.<br />
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One knitter wanted to know the "rules" for going down a size. Well, there aren't any. You have to look at each project and examine the ribbing. If it looks bad then you need to fix it.<br />
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The problem occurs when you transition from a knit to a purl stitch. If you do not bring the yarn completely forward the excess creates a ladder. Sometimes it can work back into the previous stitch. The photo below shows an exaggerated example. The white pin marks a column of stitches which do not match the column to the right. The red pin shows ladders. The easiest fix is to make sure that you bring the yarn forward completely. This does NOT mean to yank the yarn forward and to pull it so tightly that you pull yarn from the stitches just knit. That makes it look even worse. It can take a bit of practice but it soon becomes a habit. Next time you rib, look closely when you work the first purl and you will see what I mean.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3_Tq8Op7i7bnk-6TSxLZgudCFLl1I8JBopUBtJ9-Z8k7vXmm1xrDP4D1Qu4iY1YyC_dHxRERIwSICByhQxY8Mwz5H5BUakxw2CEjv3c1jc2i5Yt5mg_jkC2ZeDPj3ApbyeE9KQ2XaHPQ/s1600/IMG_1378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="422" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3_Tq8Op7i7bnk-6TSxLZgudCFLl1I8JBopUBtJ9-Z8k7vXmm1xrDP4D1Qu4iY1YyC_dHxRERIwSICByhQxY8Mwz5H5BUakxw2CEjv3c1jc2i5Yt5mg_jkC2ZeDPj3ApbyeE9KQ2XaHPQ/s320/IMG_1378.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This photo shows the same ribbing where I have taken care to bring the yarn completely forward. Would using smaller needles help? Yes, but it really doesn't solve the underlying problem which is the excess yarn. There would just be less of it. Here is a videos showing this: <span style="color: red;"><a href="https://youtu.be/4E8mskeN7DA"><span style="color: red;">Fixing your ribbing</span></a> </span>Actually the real reason I hardly ever use smaller needles for ribbing is it is pretty much a sure thing that I will forget to do so on the fronts or sleeve cuffs or somewhere else. I do sometimes put it into my patterns to use smaller needles when I remember, particularly if the yarn is inelastic like cotton or linen.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQOdXg2AR1DJRt2X3_lOvdce-NHaTlRZ0INMpErsphBr5so9_tPgoV3SD2jIx687U5hbo49nCXdH1to5xGCkhxnBBSAmOWIuCZ0XH5TS0kV4U7ZJeOLEbPqvGIxJXCLxM8kkSpkQoRR-u/s1600/IMG_1377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="407" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQOdXg2AR1DJRt2X3_lOvdce-NHaTlRZ0INMpErsphBr5so9_tPgoV3SD2jIx687U5hbo49nCXdH1to5xGCkhxnBBSAmOWIuCZ0XH5TS0kV4U7ZJeOLEbPqvGIxJXCLxM8kkSpkQoRR-u/s320/IMG_1377.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The other thing I see in Lesson 1 of the Basics class is this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmG-37v8VYgIsakuTE5_RXmysGTpltQ_wgF9PlxTn69jRG4rJA8yM7QHl8RLeFTTE1aDm9Wxisq1gAU8kOJQaoDxq8ukkL0JA7KDiaLyvzWL5zjGwI0E-tcFPktEBFdVyeUR72uDV9fwO/s1600/IMG_1376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="381" data-original-width="363" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmG-37v8VYgIsakuTE5_RXmysGTpltQ_wgF9PlxTn69jRG4rJA8yM7QHl8RLeFTTE1aDm9Wxisq1gAU8kOJQaoDxq8ukkL0JA7KDiaLyvzWL5zjGwI0E-tcFPktEBFdVyeUR72uDV9fwO/s320/IMG_1376.JPG" width="304" /></a></div>
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So what is the problem? The ribbing is fairly even but compare the size of the knit stitches in the ribbing to the stitches above. The cause for this is the same...excess yarn between the stitches. In the example below I've made an effort to fix it. Is it perfect, no, but this is hand knitting. This is one situation, IF IT BOTHERED ME (which it does not) that I might go down a needle size.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NR7Oo4NiBjQsiHoHNHm2VWQZ1aBxfHaDZt-McNd4spOMrPY8ZXx3hpec6GrfcbBmKghSKmZ86BBAL6AlOmS-e9ikd7RlxyGYJKUNQFrfryCu56amr7t6m9PFYTWLdAfWd62ahU2TUPFe/s1600/IMG_1375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="338" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NR7Oo4NiBjQsiHoHNHm2VWQZ1aBxfHaDZt-McNd4spOMrPY8ZXx3hpec6GrfcbBmKghSKmZ86BBAL6AlOmS-e9ikd7RlxyGYJKUNQFrfryCu56amr7t6m9PFYTWLdAfWd62ahU2TUPFe/s320/IMG_1375.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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One time you may want to go down a needle size is when picking up stitches for a band or neckline, particularly if the yarn is inelastic. There might be a gap between the edge and the band if the pick up stitches are loose which they frequently are. Smaller needles can help this. How do you know if you need to do this? I am about to get on my Soap Box again. If you save your gauge swatch you can use it to test out the band. Work a few rows, then stand back and see if there is a gap. It is a lot easier to test this out on a swatch rather than the front of a sweater. </div>
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To sum up, there really aren't rules for this sort of thing. Use your own judgment as a knitter (except for the swatches in the Masters Program). Yes, you could use smaller needles. The reviewers aren't watching you knit but the only person you are cheater is yourself.</div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30 to 3:20.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
Guess what this is? Stay tuned. It will all be made clear as I get further along.<br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-12505554714386087902018-02-02T11:14:00.001-05:002018-02-02T11:14:23.387-05:00Mirroring Bar IncreasesI've spent the week working on the Spring issue of Cast On. It really is a ton of work. I'm taking a few minutes break to do this entry and then back to WordPress. I have most of the photographs from the photographer. We should be able to go live this weekend if all goes well.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
I had a day after uploading all of the patterns and articles where I was waiting for photographs. I took the time to start the revisions on the Basics course. I've finished Lesson 1. First of all, I haven't added any new swatches. Most of the changes are to the reference section. I am having the students knit a preliminary stitch to make the materials more in line with Level 1 of the Masters and I've added an Extra Credit swatch. As soon as I've finished Cast On, I will revise Lessons 2 and 3 as well. <br />
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As always, if you are a student or have taken the class in the past I will be HAPPY to send you the new files when they are finished. For students who have just signed up and not started yet, I'm going to send them the new Lesson 1 and they have the choice of whether to do the preliminary swatch or not. Please just email me at aholladay@tkga.org for more information. <br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
After reviewing the Basics class I realized that there was an omission. I never discussed using bar increases (or kf&b) for garment shaping. The reason is I never use these. The bar increase leaves a purl bump as part of the increase. There is usually a small hole at the base as well. It is very noticeable and I prefer lifted increases for my own projects. However, this use of the bar increase is covered in the Masters Program so I've added this use to the reference information and an extra credit swatch. <br />
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The swatch below shows bar increases. The increases label "A" were made in the first and last stitches. If a project is to be seamed or have stitches picked up along the selvedge DON'T EVER do this. It makes finishing more difficult and the final result looks "homemade" rather than "handmade". It is fine to do this for shawls and scarves but not for an edge which will be finished.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakJjMhXJzY6Xo4Ma5PQzTg-Z0uWF8PfeEC6L8Gf2pwuLgsT3uFBqemvSIwARG6w6w_afIpLxloZumWqB92bCGcmPmuzCt0llsoEIdlOQd3EdjT7vNiW2mQJFUy8E_qgHdLusvC_rLpCSX/s1600/numbers.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="368" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakJjMhXJzY6Xo4Ma5PQzTg-Z0uWF8PfeEC6L8Gf2pwuLgsT3uFBqemvSIwARG6w6w_afIpLxloZumWqB92bCGcmPmuzCt0llsoEIdlOQd3EdjT7vNiW2mQJFUy8E_qgHdLusvC_rLpCSX/s640/numbers.JPG" width="570" /></a></div>
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To make a bar increase you knit into the front of the stitch and then into the back. When you knit into the back you create the bar. This makes mirroring bar increases more difficult. If you look at "C" in the photograph above, notice that the selevedge stitch and two stitches are before the purl bump. The increase was worked IN the 3rd stitch from the edge but the results appear AFTER the 3rd stitch. Now look at B. There is one stitch and the selvedge stitch after the purl bump. The increase was worked IN the 3rd stitch from the edge and the purl bump appears AFTER that stitch. The increases are not mirrored. When you look at a project where this is done, it draws the eye and not in a good way.<br />
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"D" shows mirrored bar increases. To use bar increases in this situation, if you want the selevedge stitch and a knit stitch before the increase, work the increase in the first stitch after the selvedge on the right side. On the left side, work in the the 3rd stitch from the edge.<br />
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The video shows how to do this as well. <span style="color: red;"><b><a href="https://youtu.be/EE44uwDdvew">Mirroring Bar Increases</a></b></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">KNITTING SALON</span></b><br />
Salon will be on Sunday, February 4th at 1:30 to 3:20.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CURRENT PROJECTS</span></b><br />
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Today is the deadline for proposals for the Summer 2018 issue. I'm working on personal projects--texting gloves for me and a hat. The yarn is from Anzula. The hat uses Ava and the gloves use Cloud. The color is Red Shoe. Normally something like this would take me a day or so but I have had NO time to knit. I've been chained to my computer.</div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-37383172047890819002018-01-19T15:07:00.003-05:002018-01-19T15:15:46.104-05:00Counting Rows in Garter and Seed Stitch<br />
I have been working on the Spring 2018 issue of Cast On. What a lot of work! This issue has been quite frustrating to work on due to the havoc the weather has played on postal and UPS deliveries. I pushed the photo shoot back a week in hopes that a few more items would arrive. Alas, I am still waiting. The process of uploading the WORD files after our tech editor, Sharon, gets them to me can take a long time. I spent over 6 hours on one technical article but it will be well worth it to our readers. That is an explanation of why I don't have much listed under my current projects. If I am at home, I am sitting at the computer with my dear friend (and enemy) WordPress.<br />
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We got great news this week at Masters Day at the DFW Fiber Festival is sold out! We are testing the idea out of piggy backing on fiber festivals since we are not going to do full blown conferences again.<br />
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I haven't posted a photo of George and Petipa for quite some time. This photograph documents a rare occurrence. They never are this close together. They are sharing the sun near a heat register since the temperature is in the teens.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've had several students finish up the Basics course. It always makes me happy to see them complete the course. Once I get Cast On out of the way, I'm going to look at the course and make some revisions. It's been quite a few years since I've updated it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This week's tip is prompted by what I have seen in several of the Lesson 3 work of the Basics class which discusses how to measure gauge. No, you don't knit 10 stitches and then get out the oldest tape measure you have and count the stitches. I've done several blog entries on how to measure gauge (look at Gauge in the Index and you can find them) but since several students had this issue I decided to do a special post on the topic. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The photo below is a close up of garter stitch. In the Basics class I have the students calculate gauge and you have to be able to count rows and stitches to do so. I have found it interesting over the years to discover that very few knitters know what a stitch looks like unless it is on their needle. First for the way to count the stitches. The "frown" is the stitch, the "smile" is the space between the stitch. If you count the "frowns" and the "smiles" both as a stitch, you will get twice as many stitches as there actually are. I like to tell my students you can save yourself a lot of grief when knitting a gauge swatch if you jot down the number of stitches you cast on. Then you don't even need to count them. (Subtract two for the selvedges.)</span><br />
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Now notice how the "smiles" and "frowns" interlock to make a ridge. Several of my students have counted the ridges for their gauge. It takes two rows to make a ridge as the photo below shows where I have stretched the garter stitch.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> You can clearly see the two rows interlocking to make the ridges so....</span><br />
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Now onto seed stitch. I've had a couple of students recently count the only the purl bumps for their gauge calculations. If you look close you can see that there is a knit stitch at the top of the purl bump which is hard to see but it is there. Yes, you can count the purl bumps for your row count by multiplying that number by 2. Take care when you measure that you include the knit stitch on top of that purl bump or subtract one from the row count.<br />
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I've numbered the rows below. When you are calculating gauge, it will only be as accurate as your measurement and the number of stitches/rows. If you get any of those wrong, you gauge won't be accurate.</div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>SALON</b></span><br />
I won't be having salon this week as I'm not sure how long the photo shoot will take. I'll have one next week from 2-4 most likely<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
As I said above, I haven't spent much time knitting. I did manage to finish all of the texting gloves..4 pairs total. I love the gloves but finishing is such a PAIN. All those ends to weave in. My dear sweet blind Petipa is guarding the last pair. What really made me happy is that I used yarn I had in my stash for all of them. They were all worked in Zen Garden yarn I picked up at TNNA several years ago.<br />
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I'm going to use up some Kidsilk Haze (I special ordered 10 skeins years ago. What did I think I was going to make!), Richesse et Soie from Knit One Crochet Too (I think it has been discontinued for over 15 years!) and the Mondo Fil metallic left over from my Rose Gold Hoodie. It will be a simple hat. You don't need much of a design with all of these fabulous yarns...<br />
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Now I need to start thinking of what to knit for the Summer issue...</div>
Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-49202694423192673282018-01-05T13:41:00.002-05:002018-01-05T13:41:38.610-05:00Twisted Decreases Again<br />
Yes, I know it has been quite some time since I've posted an entry. No excuses but I'll try to do better.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I did receive quite a few lessons and despite my general laziness in doing blog entries, I managed to review them all the day I received them. A reminder...For my non-US students, I will no longer send back the swatches after each lesson. Postage is just too high and I don't want to increase the cost of the course. What I have been doing is photographing areas of swatches that need special attention. I think this will work.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This week's tip was prompted by questions from several students. In Lesson 2 of the Basics course covers different types of decreases with an emphasis on mirroring them. If you are an experienced knitter mirroring isn't big news but for new knitters, thanks to the way patterns are written it can be new information. The way most patterns state how to place decreases is part of the problem--"Dec 1 at each neck edge every RS row 3 times". How would you know not to place the decrease in the selvedge stitch and that there are other decreases than k2tog.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Unless someone points it out, a knitter may not even notice that they are twisting SSK or SKP decreases which means they won't mirror the k2tog decreases. In the photograph below I've labeled four left slanting decreases. (K2tog decreases slant to the right. If this isn't ringing a bell you might want to look at<span style="color: red;"> <a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2012/06/it-was-sort-of-boring-week.html"><span style="color: red;">Mirroring Decreases</span></a></span>, an earlier blog.)</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0F-YAFeLwN8umXEzPsR895QDqOJ-Yxyp5vXu9T0Eq4l9-Su7Y2CjiMfo0WwefaV0NDWQR_p9yi-pm6ycGfsTTlcTuDnZDuEcVnnP1Q34hgzmdyBvFyKJDJI8UMdtppPK9Vx_HQDXCRGQn/s1600/Twisted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1566" data-original-width="1525" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0F-YAFeLwN8umXEzPsR895QDqOJ-Yxyp5vXu9T0Eq4l9-Su7Y2CjiMfo0WwefaV0NDWQR_p9yi-pm6ycGfsTTlcTuDnZDuEcVnnP1Q34hgzmdyBvFyKJDJI8UMdtppPK9Vx_HQDXCRGQn/s640/Twisted.jpg" width="622" /></a><br />
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<b style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">is a properly worked SSK where the stitches are slipped knitwise to the other needle to ensure that they won't be twisted. Care was taken not to stretch out the looks. Notice that the stitch on top is open at the bottom as is the stitch underneath.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>B</b></span><b style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </b>is a k2tog tbl (two stitches knit together through the back loop). Another way to look at this is an SSK where the stitches haven't been slipped. Compare <span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A</b></span> and <span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">B </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">and you can s<span style="font-family: inherit;">ee that both stitches in </span></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">B </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">are twisted at the base. Twisted stitches are more noticeable and don't mirror k2tog decreases.</span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>C</b></span><b style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </b>is an SKP decrease where the stitch has been slipped purlwise, not knitwise. This twists the decrease. To make an SKP properly you must slip the stitch knitwise. (General rule...if the stitch is going to be used on the same row, slip it knitwise. If it is to be used on the next row, slip it purlwise.)<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>D</b></span><b style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </b>is an SSK where only the top stitch is slipped. I've had several students tell me that they are sure I haven't seen this before since it is so marvelous a solution to oversized SSK decreases. Nope. I'm aware of this decrease technique. Compare <span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A</b></span> and <span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>D</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">and see if you can spot the difference. If you don't slip both stitches, the stitch underneath is twisted and yes, this does change the appearance of the decrease. Feel free to use this technique in your own projects any time but if you are doing the Masters Program, you will be expected to produce an SSK without any of the stitches twisted. </span><br />
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Here is a link to the video I did of these decreases: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBsH6tBzdPM"><span style="color: red;">Left Slanting Decreases</span></a><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30 to 3:20. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Actually I don't feel too bad about not making a posting after I looked at all of the knitting I've been doing. Between holiday/birthday projects and things for Cast On, I've been busy. By the way, I learned the hard way this year when I was trying to figure out what I'd given for gifts last year . I didn't put them in my blog--hence the number of photos this year.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBnbVlL1ZlcD81Y990OSw9hnAafpt4Q2tnS6v8OvB_ydKHAOz-bFr2lN8KZQrErM59Rm2rQ5DaXJVJ-OjoBs7RZSTYZu7l8tZRpKeiZmmcMU_UcYy6Lz24GhwMKnn3O2zJTA2ZMuBQIQ_7/s1600/rosegold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="658" data-original-width="1600" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBnbVlL1ZlcD81Y990OSw9hnAafpt4Q2tnS6v8OvB_ydKHAOz-bFr2lN8KZQrErM59Rm2rQ5DaXJVJ-OjoBs7RZSTYZu7l8tZRpKeiZmmcMU_UcYy6Lz24GhwMKnn3O2zJTA2ZMuBQIQ_7/s640/rosegold.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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I did take a photo of the first thing I did for the Spring issue and posted it in my last entry. This is a hoodie knit with Mondo Fil yarns. One is a cotton strand and the other is a metallic. The drape of this is really amazing, sort of like light weight chain mail. It is called the Rose Gold Hoodie. The hood is oversized so that it drapes nicely on the shoulders when not worn.<br />
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I realized that we very rarely do designs for children so we bought a child size mannequin and we will have two designs for girls in the Spring issue. This is a top and skirt worked in Anzula's Gerty, an American Targhee yarn. I chose it as it is so springy. This garment is sized from Child's 4 to Adult Small. If you look closely at the photo to the right you can see our new baby mannequin and yes, it does have Christmas lights on it. (I took the lights off of the child mannequin to put the clothes on it. They were a nice addition to my dining room for the holidays.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3emm3tbpz0-j84jZcf6oDLZn0eGmEw9bhgAZf2ho0Eanm2THxkPgcJs8UdqWzETRkJ5lQFKswr6gEU_ANwgAmsjzncd01nHd7VVA3sOHUn4jAGX5btscAbqLc-EB2xh2rfTLyNsPpb80s/s1600/peek.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1164" data-original-width="1600" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3emm3tbpz0-j84jZcf6oDLZn0eGmEw9bhgAZf2ho0Eanm2THxkPgcJs8UdqWzETRkJ5lQFKswr6gEU_ANwgAmsjzncd01nHd7VVA3sOHUn4jAGX5btscAbqLc-EB2xh2rfTLyNsPpb80s/s640/peek.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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I did a bunch of presents....<br />
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Socks with zig zag pattern (which I love).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV5DD-98M_MCTYkaB72NoHyPlMSmGp7T6cgYXnhLUqz3-74Nm_SgP4lDuHl3lLiUKC0YxXTkdyU74PBmnQN0WC2Ok2YXAyIXhZJ4yswjUd0Xaed4_DxmpZHOWlvY24XT-9fg18E_I_NpSj/s1600/IMG_1314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV5DD-98M_MCTYkaB72NoHyPlMSmGp7T6cgYXnhLUqz3-74Nm_SgP4lDuHl3lLiUKC0YxXTkdyU74PBmnQN0WC2Ok2YXAyIXhZJ4yswjUd0Xaed4_DxmpZHOWlvY24XT-9fg18E_I_NpSj/s640/IMG_1314.JPG" width="480" /></a><br />
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I liked it so much I used it for a couple of buffs (didn't photograph them all)...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBhEn0lxcn1aDPnB02e1ArfCPa0JGPXMO7CemcMGU1AaLyGwCSECIEg1ukNx-cWZHn6yu4969kWGQmsKAUz8JwwcBTI5rB_YDcZKsRD-VEI_ZZkw-mi3x2FNcVzs1wNtJx0DVYmPrKpcpb/s1600/IMG_1337.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="320" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBhEn0lxcn1aDPnB02e1ArfCPa0JGPXMO7CemcMGU1AaLyGwCSECIEg1ukNx-cWZHn6yu4969kWGQmsKAUz8JwwcBTI5rB_YDcZKsRD-VEI_ZZkw-mi3x2FNcVzs1wNtJx0DVYmPrKpcpb/s640/IMG_1337.JPG" width="592" /></a></div>
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My sister and my niece and nephew all wanted hats, in gray. The first one has a cabled cuff and the last one has a sawtooth boarder and yes, there are lights around the mannequin head which I've named Anne Boleyn.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb7aSKaMKd3padCGLRdMTrPmjIn6OG5-ZHzDtIzEU59C-wwp4toqrPCC4ODaLYgICIsWbZ1g0abchT0kwMc8yHf3CeUaoNvP8sOBJCS009W1vAdxy2s91s2Pl88xtsYyf3ly8X9_t2CBTV/s1600/Hats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="588" data-original-width="1600" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb7aSKaMKd3padCGLRdMTrPmjIn6OG5-ZHzDtIzEU59C-wwp4toqrPCC4ODaLYgICIsWbZ1g0abchT0kwMc8yHf3CeUaoNvP8sOBJCS009W1vAdxy2s91s2Pl88xtsYyf3ly8X9_t2CBTV/s640/Hats.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I made several pairs of texting gloves (and I still have to do a few more pairs). I kept one of the pairs I knit for the Fall 2017 issue of Cast On and I have to say, they do keep my hands warm. When I walked to Starbucks this morning it was 9 degrees. <br />
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Now to start thinking about things for the Summer 2018 issue....Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-9175322671321214122017-11-10T12:56:00.000-05:002017-11-10T12:58:15.339-05:00Reading Your Work and Stitch Anatomy<br />
Sorry I haven't posted for awhile but it is very time consuming trying to get a magazine out and I had surgery in the middle of all that as well. The day the Winter 2017/2018 issue closed, was the deadline for proposals for the Spring 2018. When we were managed by Offingers there were three people who worked on the magazine plus some contractors. Now it is just me and our photographer.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
Quite a few lessons arrived this fall and despite everything I managed to get them all out within a day or two. It is funny how I notice trends in the lessons. The tip of the week addresses one of those trends.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
As I reviewed lessons for the Finishing Course and Lesson 3 of the Basics course I noticed something that many students did not seem to understand and it wasn't all that surprising to me. I've taught at conferences all over the country and whenever I teach finishing or gauge, I have to build in extra time to discuss stitch anatomy. Based on my experience the VAST majority of knitters only look at the stitches on their needles, never at the stitches in the knitted piece. If you can't tell the difference between a stitch and the space between a stitch you will find finishing very difficult. In Lesson 3 of the Basics class, students calculate gauge for different stitch patterns. The best (and most accurate) way to measure gauge is how we do it in the Masters Program. (If you aren't familiar with this method, go to the index of my blog and look under Gauge. There are lots of entries.) I ask that the students place yarn <i><b>between</b></i> stitches as the first step in calculating the gauge. To do this you need to know what a column of stitches look like. A stitch in stockinette looks like a "V". In the photograph below, the yellow yarn is IN the center of the stitches in the column. The red yarn is BETWEEN the column of stitches. If I were counting stitches or rows, I would count the "V"s.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaI8ippXo5p-X-3Y7fym-n94U-iYYEnadwqvO14o_gVGfrp5yrA8oX1h6dzK0NGkuYywvcaVe3iBeumQmx3N_PcPaKrOQSgZqoAvNYNhvOJOt5MKEt_4prv7OhbdPd3LuJ1RDgdZZSHIN/s1600/IMG_1268+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="358" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaI8ippXo5p-X-3Y7fym-n94U-iYYEnadwqvO14o_gVGfrp5yrA8oX1h6dzK0NGkuYywvcaVe3iBeumQmx3N_PcPaKrOQSgZqoAvNYNhvOJOt5MKEt_4prv7OhbdPd3LuJ1RDgdZZSHIN/s400/IMG_1268+%25282%2529.JPG" width="286" /></a></div>
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In Garter Stitch and reverse stockinette, the stitch looks like a frown. The space between the column of stitches looks like a smile. In the photograph the yellow thread is in the center of the stitches. The red thread is between the stitches. If I were counting the number of stitches, I would count the frowns.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdohhf9xCM875MCTkkYYq504YTWeo_0e9QwETSOpEsSoftt6OnIpljFDXuKkOIff-Y3ocv3q3Vd4e_P8HaOBhtrDtlDop1b1-kyOI0IiduzCHPzYntBAM9Jc5pLGBD9OHRbjLtJif20GXw/s1600/IMG_1269.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="335" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdohhf9xCM875MCTkkYYq504YTWeo_0e9QwETSOpEsSoftt6OnIpljFDXuKkOIff-Y3ocv3q3Vd4e_P8HaOBhtrDtlDop1b1-kyOI0IiduzCHPzYntBAM9Jc5pLGBD9OHRbjLtJif20GXw/s400/IMG_1269.JPG" width="257" /></a></div>
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Dealing with half stitches in gauge calculations is possible but for finishing it is rarely a good idea. Seams and bands look best if they are placed BETWEEN the selvedge stitch and the next column of stitches. In the swatch on the right, the seam is properly placed and if it weren't for the green yarn tail you probably wouldn't see where the seam is placed. In the swatch on the left, the seam is placed IN the selvedge stitch in the blue piece. Notice that this leaves half of the "V", For the first part of the seam on the white piece, the seam is also placed in the selvedge stitch which does create a "V" but it doesn't really match the other stitches. Selvedge stitches are generally pretty ugly. Half way through, the seam is properly placed on the white side but since there is only a half stitch on the other, it is very noticeable. When seams and bands aren't properly placed, the finished piece looks "homemade" instead of "handmade."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-qsI3DINmvKw1gUnDJY-L92z1yAS-NU-f83DgHMEylZWZWQHLiqnIQ70oL4rrbug7DArNLBWaBDuUmmenefbrJm64Cx1Pb6X0tx0FtJPGkOcqheHU-nUHZvbBN8-d4L7k8PxpiaUV_uk/s1600/IMG_1272.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="186" data-original-width="480" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-qsI3DINmvKw1gUnDJY-L92z1yAS-NU-f83DgHMEylZWZWQHLiqnIQ70oL4rrbug7DArNLBWaBDuUmmenefbrJm64Cx1Pb6X0tx0FtJPGkOcqheHU-nUHZvbBN8-d4L7k8PxpiaUV_uk/s640/IMG_1272.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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When you are finishing you not only need to be able to see columns of stitches but also the stitch itself. When you pick up stitches on a bound off edge, you pick up the stitch IN the stitch below the bound off edge. If you pick up the stitches BETWEEN the stitches, you pinch the stitches together an you get the "dread 11s". When you seam two bound off edges together you seam IN the stitches as well. The photograph below the seam is properly placed in the right swatch. Notice that the column of stitches continues from one side to the other. In the swatch on the left the seam has been placed between the stitches. You can see why the pinched stitches are called "dread 11s".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3-9t4x13AUSPgW9d9mAAy2XtdCz4Vg1SSAJGfYXQnQ_vIf6y_TNwIh27o_tA_FRlM1QCmzJeJmiOuREIv0WsAJuM8r3vtCarewccpWWydcJyGKNH1zSpBs1cowSyGctira1QKWq8kMomj/s1600/IMG_1270.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="148" data-original-width="346" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3-9t4x13AUSPgW9d9mAAy2XtdCz4Vg1SSAJGfYXQnQ_vIf6y_TNwIh27o_tA_FRlM1QCmzJeJmiOuREIv0WsAJuM8r3vtCarewccpWWydcJyGKNH1zSpBs1cowSyGctira1QKWq8kMomj/s640/IMG_1270.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I have done lots of blog entries which include stitch anatomy. If you check the Index you can find entries for this as well as "Reading Your Work." I've also done a video for this entry which discusses some of these same topics. <span style="color: red;"> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrMRwpEgl-o"><span style="color: red;">Stitch Anatomy and Reading Your Work</span></a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Salon will be on Sunday from 1:30 to 3:20.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I finished the Circles Tunic in time for the photoshoot. I didn't knit much until last week. I've been sitting at my computer uploading the Winter issue. </span><br />
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I used Elemental Affect Civility Sport for the tunic and the duplicate stitch circles. I had so much of the duplicate stitch yarn left over that I decided to use it for a top for the Spring issue. It took no time at all to knit. The colors aren't accurate. I haven't woven in the ends yet and I haven't cut out the dental elastics yet as I need to write the pattern.</div>
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-44936179609519163512017-09-29T12:35:00.001-04:002017-09-29T12:47:48.382-04:00Flat Tubular Bind Off<br />
I've been knitting like a fiend to make the deadline for the photo shoot. What on earth possessed me to propose a poncho! It is done and I am making good progress on the tunic but it will be a close thing.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
Please photograph your swatches, front and back, before sending them. There are two reasons for this. I will email you my letter as soon as I review your work and, depending on where you live, it will take awhile to get the swatches. Also, sometimes the swatches just don't arrive. <br />
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One thing I've noticed lately in many of the swatches is how the selvedge stitches curl under and for the Masters Program we want them flat. There are a lot of reasons for this. It is a very good habit to develop. Flat selvedges make finishing MUCH easier. For the Masters swatches, it helps the knitter (and reviewers) see if there is a tension issue at the selvedges which is a common issue. If you can't see it, you can fix it.<br />
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I took a close up photo of one of my current projects as it was blocking.<br />
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Notice that I've flattened out the selvedge stitch and pinned them at an angle so the edges will dry that way. By the way, dental elastics mark the locations of decreases. I am so bad at taking notes when I design that I've learned that writing the pattern is much easier when I "annotate" like this.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
The poncho uses the tubular cast on and bind off techniques. When I went to do the bind off I couldn't think of how to get started. I checked my own videos and realized all of them show how to do this in the round since I use this technique mainly for socks or necklines. This tip rectifies that omission.<br />
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The preparation for a tubular bind off is basically the same for both circular and flat knitting. The stitches in two to four rows are alternately slipped. If you are working flat, you generally work the knit stitches and slip the purl stitches with the yarn in front (provided you are working an even number of stitches) for all rows. You can't do that for circular knitting. On the first round you work the knit stitches and slip the purl stitches and reverse this for the next round. Here is a link showing how to do this: <a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2013/11/tubular-bind-off.html"><span style="color: red;">Preparing for Tubular Bind Off</span></a>.<br />
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When you do the bind off in the round, you begin with a purl stitch and you can adjust your stitches so that a purl stitch is first. For flat knitting the first stitch is generally a knit stitch and you can't just shift it to the right. You have to work it separately. To get started (after you've cut the yarn and threaded up a tapestry needle) you insert the tapestry needle <b><i><span style="color: red;">knitwise</span></i></b> into this stitch, pull the yarn tight and drop this stitch off the needle. From here on the process is the same as for circular knitting.<br />
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Step 1--Insert the tapestry needle knitwise into the purl stitch. Pull the yarn tight.<br />
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Step 2--Insert the tapestry needle purlwise into the knit stitch you dropped and into the knit stitch to the left of the purl stitch and pull the yarn tight.<br />
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Step 3--Insert the tapestry needle purlwise back into purl stitch and pull the yarn tight. Drop the stitches from the needle. You just repeat this until the end.<br />
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The video shows how you begin and end the bind off. Here is the link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psQNdIEXCWQ"><span style="color: red;">Beginning and Ending Flat Tubular Bind Offs</span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
I won't be having salon again this weekend. Hopefully soon!<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
I finally finished the poncho. You can wear it two ways.<br />
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I've finished the fronts and back of the tunic I'm doing. It is going to have a duplicate stitch design so I'm not going to seam it until I've done that. The sleeves will be picked and worked from the shoulder down.<br />
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Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-63946237843318827962017-09-08T12:34:00.003-04:002017-09-08T12:34:45.211-04:00Left Slanting DecreasesI had a nice visit with knitters working on the Masters Program at Stitches Midwest back in early August. It was a longer drive than I thought, particularly since I only went up for one night. I broke up the drive on the way there and back with a stop at the Albanese Candy Outlet in Indiana. I have a weakness for Gummi Bears. I have a few left from the 5 lb (!) bag I bought.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
The official start of fall for me is when I start getting more lessons to review and new students signing up for courses. Things have definitely picked up since the first of September.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
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The tip this week is prompted by what I have seen in several lessons. Lesson 2 of the Basics class discusses decreases. Several students have had difficulty spotting the differences between left and right slanting decreases. I've discussed this quite a bit in the past. Here is a link to an earlier entry: <b><a href="http://www.arendaholladay.com/2015/04/right-and-left-slanting-decreases.html" style="color: red;">Left and Right Slanting Decreases</a>.</b></div>
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Another thing covered in the lesson is how to make left and right slanting decreases "match". This is a problem for many knitters. K2tog produces a small, neat decrease that slants towards the right. The problem is with left slanting decreases. They will NEVER EVER truly match a k2tog but you can work to make them as small and unobtrusive as possible. To make this decrease you have to reorient the stitches to be decreased on the needle so that the decrease will not be twisted. This is done by slipping them back to the needle which stretches them out. An SKP decrease requires slipping one stitch and an SSK requires slipping two. If you use just your needle tips you can minimize how much the stitch is stretched out. In the photograph below, I have done that to make the decreases. Notice that the SKP is larger than the SSK. </div>
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A few years ago I was experimenting with this and it occurred to me that if you wrap a stitch the wrong way (under the needle for a purl stitch), this reorients the stitch on the needle. I tried doing this to the two stitches to be decreased on the row before. The trick is to remember to do this. The other thing to avoid is wrapping the stitches too tightly. This will make the decrease look pinched. On the decrease row, knit the two stitches together using just the needle tips. In the photograph I did this for the decrease on the top. It is a bit smaller. Here is a video showing all three methods: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6JBitx6tjA"><b><span style="color: red;">Making Left Slanting Decreases</span></b></a><br />
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By the way, if you are doing the Masters Program, do not use the method where only the first stitch is slipped. The stitch underneath is twisted and yes, this is visible. <br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I won't be having salon this weekend. Stay tuned.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've been working on a poncho for the Winter Cast On. At TNNA this summer, they were showing a lot of cabled sweaters and ponchos/ruanas. I decided to do a cabled poncho. What was I thinking? It is a lot of knitting. I am almost finished with the first piece. I'm using Kelbourne Fibers Arranmore Light which is wonderful to work with. Here is a partial view. The cables are meant to look like snakes. They are random and asymmetrical.</span><br />
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<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1123325881388043723.post-64485334725488766032017-07-28T11:04:00.001-04:002017-07-28T11:04:25.756-04:00Make 1 IncreasesThe last time I posted was the day before our photo shoot. Since then (besides a very short vacation) I've been chained to my computer uploading the patterns and articles to WordPress. All I need now is the photographs and we can go live. I'm looking at the first week of August.<br />
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I've decided to go to Stitches Midwest next Friday. Some TKGA people are meeting at the Gather Bar on Friday at 5:30. Stop by if you are there.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>STUDENT NEWS</b></span><br />
Lessons are starting to come in, I'm glad to say. Keep me busy!<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>TIP OF THE WEEK</b></span><br />
This week's tip was motivated by a comment on my last entry. A couple of things first...if you have a question, it is far better to send me an email directly (just click on the Contact Me choice and I'll be happy to answer but the one thing I don't do is answer questions about other people's patterns. It can take quite a bit of time to do so. The biggest problem is that it is usually a pattern from Ravelry. I love Ravelry as much as the next person but a problem with many of the patterns is that they are not tech edited and I've found that many times when someone has a question about the pattern, it is an error. Contact the designer when you have an issue. If the pattern is from a book or magazine, it should have been tech edited and there should be glossary or index of terms. If there isn't that is a sign it isn't a very good book. If you've knitted for any time at all you've discovered that there is very little consistency in abbreviations and that brings up this week's topic...Make 1 increases.<br />
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I've seen patterns where the designer uses "M1" as a generic abbreviation for any increase and many of my Basic students are surprised to discover that there is more than one way to increase. In the Masters Program we mean very specific things when we refer to M1 increases. There are three different types of M1 increases, open, right-slanting and left-slanting. We use the abbreviations M1o, M1R, M1L to distinguish them. M1 alone generally means you can choose between the left or right slanting. <br />
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All M1 increases use the horizontal bar <b><i><span style="color: red;">between</span></i></b> two stitches. In the photograph below, there are examples of M1 increases. A is the open form of the M1. It is the easiest to make. You just lift the horizontal bar between the two stitches and knit it. It leaves a small hole. B is a yarnover. M1o and yarnovers are related but a yarnover will leave a much larger hole. C identifies a left slanting M1 increase. (On the other side you can see the right slanting.) To make these increases, you twist the horizontal bar so that the leg slants to the right or left. I'm not going to describe this process as it is much easier just to demonstrate it. <span style="color: red;"> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOOnnKvm8ag"><span style="color: red;">Make 1 Increases</span></a></span><br />
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One of the problems with M1 increases is that when you draw up the horizontal strand between the two stitches, it pulls yarn from the stitches on either side. It seems to be more of an issue for M1R increases. D shows a solution for this. If you make a TIGHT yarn over on the row before the increase (generally on the WS) you can use that excess yarn to make the increase. You can see that the hole is slightly larger in the D increases.<br />
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When you are looking at a pattern that specifics M1 increases, look at it to see exactly what it means. Should it be an M1 increase or would another increase work better.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KNITTING SALON</b></span><br />
Salon will be on Sunday from 2-4 pm.<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>CURRENT PROJECTS</b></span><br />
I have not been knitting much as I've uploading the Fall issue of Cast On. I have been working on this double knit buff for Sandy (RedFish DyeWorks). I'm almost done. Then I'll start on gloves for holiday gifts.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2vjXQzxdxCuU02DQGhi9tvbx9UQsqmvan0Khv9-ZiaUNda8_ysgN4fnegPNteYD4RYnLWJTwPbhqXiiNLBjW0LyU6duH-NZvDQ_oYkzWi2qZ0hj541IEzYhISNTFFy5EwKC_LqmK-tZHY/s1600/IMG_1149+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="418" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2vjXQzxdxCuU02DQGhi9tvbx9UQsqmvan0Khv9-ZiaUNda8_ysgN4fnegPNteYD4RYnLWJTwPbhqXiiNLBjW0LyU6duH-NZvDQ_oYkzWi2qZ0hj541IEzYhISNTFFy5EwKC_LqmK-tZHY/s640/IMG_1149+%25282%2529.jpg" width="556" /></a></div>
<br />Arenda Holladayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15718226307636307137noreply@blogger.com2