F.O.: Recyled Cashmere Sweater Scarf

This scarf began as an argyle cashmere sweater, a gift from my mom that I loved, but was unfortunately stained and starting to pill. The flecks of brown and pink in the scarf come from the argyle pattern. Because it is cashmere, it is super soft and smooshy. But you could make a similar scarf using any sweater you have lying around that has started to lose its luster (due to pills, moths, or general wear).

To make this scarf:

1) Lay out your sweater flat.
2) Cut off the body underneath the armpits, and make yarn using the same technique as my t-shirt yarn.
3) Cut off the arms, and make yarn out of those in the same way, cutting horizontally across the arms much like the t-shirt tube.
4) For the remainder of the sweater, cut in a spiral, creating one long strip of fabric, starting at the outside edges and going around the neck.
5) Wind "swarn" into balls.

(I forgot to take pictures of this process, but I may create another one and provide pictures for these instructions).

One sweater should produce 4 balls of yarn, enough yarn for a skinny scarf.

Materials:

- "swarn" from one cashmere sweater
- size 19 needles
- darning needle

Cast on 8 stitches.
Knit in garter stitch (knit all rows) until you've used up most of your yarn (leaving enough to cast off). Slip the first stitch of each row to create a nice selvedge.

To join balls of yarn, just knot them--the fabric is bulky enough that the joins will not show.

Cast off.
Weave in ends.
Stretch the scarf gently to extend the length.

Wear everywhere.

DESDEMONA Beaded Lace Shawl

[update 14 Mar. 10]



Desdemona Beaded Lace Shawl available for $6.




The story of Othello and Desdemona may be familiar, but did you know that the tragedy turned upon a lace scarf?

Early in their relationship, Othello gave Desdemona a gift: a lace scarf. Evil Iago stole Desdemona’s scarf then told Othello that Desdemona was having an affair. To support his lie, Iago told Othello that Desdemona gave the scarf to her lover.

Othello confronted Desdemona. Othello demanded that Desdemona show him the scarf, but she (obviously) couldn’t find it. This was the proof he needed of her infidelity, and he killed her.



Here she is, portrayed by Frederic Leighton (1888).


Tragic, yes. Also, great knitting inspiration. This scarf must be soft enough, delicate enough, and beautiful enough to honor Mrs. Desdemona.

Teardrop Lace: A simple eyelet lace pattern, easy to memorize, great for a beginning lace knitter. Pattern .pdf includes chart and line-by-line lace pattern instructions.


Includes instructions for optional bead detailing to signify sparkling teardrops on the scarf.


The Lana Grossa Babykid is the softest mohair yarn I've ever touched. And I've touched a lot of mohair.

Just $6.00 for a PDF download.

Knitting Travels: Bethany Beach, DE

This week my husband and I headed up to Bethany Beach, Delaware, for a week of extended-family fun. My niece brought her knitting--she's eleven now, and I taught her to knit last year. We've knitted together and watched Star Wars (the real Star Wars)--I finished Plath, and am continuing work on Desdemona (a new pattern). She's knitting the ubiquitous garter stitch scarf. And she loves it.

Here we are on the boardwalk, and me in my Plath. (Bethany Beach just did this fabulous dune recovery/rebuilding project and there's actual sand dunes behind us, with baby sea grasses.)


I found the local yarn shop, Sea Needles, on Ravelry's store search (one of my favorite things about Ravelry). Today, my husband and I rode bikes to Sea Needles. The bike-friendliness is the greatest thing about Bethany Beach. Here's a better shot of Plath, atop the bicycle.


Half of Sea Needles is actually a needlepoint shop and a frame store (see the sign?), so although it's pretty large, the knitting schtuff is only about one-third of the store. The tall shelves and narrow aisles give it a old-fashioned feel. They have some Noro, a lot of Plymouth, and bulky yarns. They have nearly no lace yarn. In short, it's an afghan-friendly yarn store. They have a lot of things that I'm not familiar with, and if I hadn't spent my year's allowance on yarn already, it would be fun to explore some of them. The things I look for first--Cascade, laceweight, Malabrigo--were not present, but as far as LYS's go, this place does the trick. Good selection of Addi Turbos, too. I picked up Rowan 42, so gorgeous! And the lady who helped me was super-nice.



Check out the gorgeous tote bag my mother-in-law gave me for my birthday yesterday. It holds my laptop, my books, and my knitting! Perfect! (It's leaning against the wall behind the bikes.)

Wisp, and a Revised Object

First, my first lace FO. Wisp, from Knitty, that I have called Wisp-of-Nippon.


I bought the yarn in Japan, and I miss Japan. I wear this and think of Japan. Or rather, of Yuzawaya, the most amazing craft store on the planet. (Said without reservation.)


My husband took the pictures. He put up with me screaming at him about (1) focus, (2) composition, (3) framing, and (4) the dishes. Good man.


I also revised an earlier piece of knitting. This was the second sweater I ever knit. The sleeves were goofy. Lots of things were wrong. Here's the original. Wow, that's just terrible. (By the way, the pattern is the Two-Tone Ribbed Shrug from Fitted Knits by Stefanie Japel.)

Here's the new one.



I added some chunky yarn to trim the edges. I wasn't sure about the third color at first, but now I like it. I really like the loooong sleeves, too. Rare for me since I'm so tall.

Another Nella FO

This one is from C.C. over at Rapt With Fiber. She modified the pattern so that the reverse-stockinette of the body is on the outside. It's looks great!


I just love this colorway.

Nella FOs!

Check out this Nella FO from Dawn over at Knitting Nonstop. Doesn't it look amazing?



I also reknit it, to check the pattern, using a different yarn: Plymouth Yarn's Boku. I don't adore it as much as the Noro, for various reasons, but it is a good, lower-priced alternative for this project.

Have you knit a project from Fiber Smarts? Send us your FOs--we'd love to see them and share them with everyone.

Bordello Scarf FO: On Knitting with Homemade Yarn

Here's a recent FO, a scarf made with yarn I plied and dyed after reclaiming it from two thrift store sweaters. The pattern is "Noro Silk Garden Scarf" by Karen Baumer at Angel Yarns. It's a short-row multi-directional scarf that shows off the Noro striping. Since the "Bordello" yarn that I made is striped, I decided to try it out with this pattern. Here's the yarn:


And here's how the scarf turned out:


I think it looks great. But more importantly, there was a strangely powerful satisfaction that came from knitting with yarn I'd made. When I worked on this one in public, and someone inquired about it (because hey, knitting just screams, "Come talk to me, strangers." Why? Why is this?), it felt great to say that I made the yarn.

Plus, the scarf is actually butch enough for my husband to wear.

Xylem V-neck Sweater

UPDATE: Xylem is now available in all sizes (XS-XXXL) on my Ravelry page for $2.95.





I'm a bit of a science nerd, and I've recently been attracted to microscopic images. This sweater was inspired by images of xylem, which are part of vascular plants' circulatory systems (see below).


Xylem is knit top-down. After casting on, you first knit back and forth, increasing for the sleeves and the v-neck, and then join and continue in the round. While I've used a garter stitch pattern on the yoke and body, you could also choose to save the garter ridge pattern for the bust area if you'd rather emphasize that.
I chose to finish the sweater with garter stitch rows around the sleeves, hem, and neckline.


This sweater takes 5 skeins of Noro Kureyon (or 550 yards) on size 7 needles.

NELLA Cropped Cardigan

[update 13 Mar. 10]



Nella is available in many sizes, from XS through 2XL, for $6.

 

Nella was inspired by dresses of the 1930s, with their swooping necklines, wide sleeves, and front ties. The Noro Kureyon accentuates the lines of the piece.


I've named it after Nella Larsen, a fabulous author of the Harlen Renaissance. Check out the style of these ladies:

Nella knit in one pieces from the top-down, then the sleeves are picked up and added, again from the top down, on two circulars.

Next, the entire edge of the piece is picked up and a garter-stitch trim applied.


At the neckline, the garter-stitch trim is applied from the top edge, working up, decreasing and shaping. Lastly, the i-cord and applied i-cord are applied, creating the tie and the neckline edging.

Interested in making Nella?

Buy the pattern for $6.00, sizes XS through 2XL.

Quant FO and New Yarns

I plied and dyed a bunch of wool and alpaca--the yarn I started spinning in an earlier post. Mostly I'm experimenting with color--Kool-Aid and food coloring. I'm scared of non-edible dyes. And I'm having the most fun making up names.

Here's PryalSpun 50-50, color "Bordello." I'm thinking sexy armwarmers for this:


Color "Fireworks":


Color "Easter Egg" that has now been made into Quant:


Another view, on my head:

Baby Washcloths!

I have two baby showers to attend today so I decided to whip up these quick washcloths for gifts.
I used Sugar 'n Cream yarn (about half a skein for each, and US size 7 needles).

I made the following patterns:

1) Bobbles the Sheep
I had never made bobbles before so this was a fun way to learn how--I used two stitches for mine (kfb, turn and purl those stitches, turn and knit, then slip the first stitch over the second to form the bobble).

2) Duck cloth


3) Reverse stockinette chevrons

This is from the stitch dictionary in Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book. So the pattern is as follows:Cast on 35 stitches.
Rows 1-3: Knit
Row 4: (RS) K5, *p1, k5; rep from * to end.
Row 5: K1, *p3, k3; rep from *, end last rep k1.
Row 6: P2, *k1, p2; rep from * to end.
Row 7: P1, *k3, p3; rep from *, end last rep p1.
Row 8: K2, *p1, k5; rep from *, end last rep k2.
Row 9: Purl
Repeat rows 4-9 8 times.
Knit 3 rows. Bind off. Weave in ends.

#4: Sugar Cubes
This one is based on a stitch from Vogue Knitting's Stitchionary Volume One (Knit & Purl). The pattern is as follows:

Cast on 41 stitches.
Knit three rows, then start pattern as follows:
Rows 1 and 5 (RS): Knit.
Rows, 2, 4, 6, and 8: K the knit sts and p the purl sts.
Row 3: K1, *p2, k6; rep from * to end.
Row 7: K5, *p2, k6; rep from * to last 4 sts, end p2, k2.
Repeat rows 1-8 five times.
Knit three rows. Bind off. Weave in ends.