Madhu Knits and Cooks

Recipe, knitting, and sewing project notes

Tag: Knitting

  • Universal Toe-Up Socks for Andy

    Andy recently (ok, more like two years ago) wanted a pair of long, handknit socks.  He thought that his last pair were a little too short, and for biking around in the winter, having a long pair of socks can make a big difference in one's comfort level.  He picked out a preferred color of yarn from Knit Picks, and even chose out a stitch pattern — the Supple Rib in the 365 Knitting Stitches a Year, stitch-a-day calendar (June 23 entry).  To achieve his long sock preference, I chose a simple toe-up sock pattern from Knitty.com, Amy Singer's Universal Toe-Up Sock Pattern.  It was an incredibly easy-to-use pattern, the finished product fit Andy's measurements PERFECTLY, and I look forward to using it again to make a wide variety of socks.  The details on what I did follow the picture below.

    Andy Putty Socks

    These socks measure 11.5 inches from the bottom of the foot to the top of the leg, 10 inches from the back of the heel to the end of the toe, and about 8 inches around the foot/leg.  About two inches from the end of the socks, instead of ribbing the top of the socks for a more snug top, I decreased 8 stitches in one row to generally maintain the pattern (2 sets of 4-stitch decreases) and have a somewhat tighter top.  Whether or not that "technique" achieves the same benefit as ribbing remains to be seen with wear.  I found that the short rib toes and heel worked out well, and I don't think Andy will notice the missing traditional heel and gusset construction.

    I used two skeins of KnitPicks.com Felici self-striping yarn in Putty on 2 size 1 Addi Turbos circulars (I knit the socks at the same time).  The gauge was 8 inches stitches per inch on that needle size.  

    I have to admit completing these socks a few months ago — next time, I promise to be more on top of blogging about my knit goods!

    Andy Putty Socks Close Up

  • Scarf Week Part II: Double Cable Scarf from One Skein

    Its funny (or sad) how much I rely on the Internet for my knitting and cooking.  Another piece of evidence that this reliance is not pushing toward better and more interesting knitting is that I recently found a fantastic scarf on the Internet to make Maya, my cousin's youngest daughter, for my recently-proclaimed "Scarf Week".  Both the pattern itself was actually published on the Internet — it was instead published in a book that I have owned for some time, One Skein. 

    I used an entire ball, with only about 5 yards left over, of Bernat's Cottontots Solid in light blue to make the scarf, which like the Edgar scarf, knit up in several hours.  I ended up adding an extra cable row because the Cottontots knit up smaller lengthwise than the gauge called for in the pattern.  I used a size 6 needle, slightly smaller than called for on the yarn band, but what seemed to achieve the correct gauge for the pattern.  The final measurements (pre-blocking) were:

    • 3.5 inches wide
    • 36.5 inches long
    • 9 inches of cables (about 10 full cables); rest of the scarf was a double rib
    Maya Double Cable Knit Scarf

    The next time I make this scarf, I might increase the needle size to size 7 to make working the rib and cables a bit easier with this specific yarn.  I will probably also try making this scarf again with a wool blend for more of a winter scarf and for greater ease while knitting, but I think for a Florida scarf, the Cottontots worked out well for a soft and decorative scarf. 

  • Scarf Week: Knitty Edgar Scarf in Light Green Mohair

    I recently made two scarves in a little over a week for my cousin Anu's two daughters.  The eldest daughter Pooja's favorite color is green, and her younger sister Maya's favorite color is blue.  I wanted to knit them both relatively lightweight scarves, as they like in Florida, but unfortunately deciding on a type of object to knit seemed to almost expand the options of what patterns to look at, instead of making the selection process easier!  It took several weeks (if not months — it was definitely a long process!) to finally settle on a pattern and yarn.  Toward the end of my search, I consulted Ravelry frequently especially after I decided to use yarns in my stash.

    For Pooja's green scarf, I settled on knitting the cravath size of the Edgar Scarf by Silke Hupka, published in the fall 2005 issue of Knitty.com.  I used a ball of Classic Elite La Gran Mohair in what I believe is the Eucalyptus Green (I can't find the label though to confirm).  The project took exactly one ball, and I used a size 8 circular needle to produce a scarf with the following measurements (post-blocking):

    • 4.5 inches at its widest point
    • 41.5 inches long
    • 10 triangle blocks total
    Mohair Green Edgar Scarf

    While the scarf was initially knitting up, I was worried the mohair blend was making the pattern look a little sloppy, but upon blocking the scarf, I could see that the mohair really worked well with the pattern.  The final scarf was plush and soft, and draped really well for a shorter scarf, which can too often be a little too bulky for their size and hard to wrap.  And given that the scarf knit up in several hours, I look forward to using both this scarf pattern and this yarn again!

  • Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival 2009!

    Yes, finally those words I've been wanting to type for three years — Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival!  Since I last went in 2006, I wanted to go back every year since then.  Unfortunately though because of my crazy work schedule, I haven't been able to go again until finally, this year when I made a commitment to myself to go.  So, early on the morning of Sat. 5/1, I got in the car with Andy and Mike and we headed off into Maryland even though there was a strong projection for rain all day.  In what appeared to be a sign that we made the right decision, as soon as we parked, the clouds cleared up and the sun came out! 

    Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival 2009

    We first methodically planned our way through the vendors, before embarking upon the first set of outdoor vendor tents.  After I made a few notes of myself of shops I wanted to return to, we then decided to get an early start at some of the lamb stations ("we" is a loose term as I am vegetarian!).  Andy and Mike started with some barbeque lamb ribs, while I decided to just get some french fries and a fresh-squeezed lemonade.  The rest of the day pretty much followed in that order — stops at vendors, followed by food breaks.  The crowd seemed much larger than 3 years ago, and so I had to make several returns to vendors later in the day when the crowds dissipated a bit.  I ended up buying only a small amount of yarn (yay to myself for staying within budget!) from Brooks Farm (two hanks of a deep purple Mas Acero and one of Solo Silk in a deep pink), Flying Fibers (one ball each of a dark grey and cream aran weight new wool), and Bijou Bison Ranch (two skeins of75% yak down/25% merino at Andy's request) — more will follow on these yarn purchases as I finally figure out what to do with them.  We also purchased a wicker basket for me to put my ongoing projects in a basket instead of all over the apartment, so it was a very practical trip as well :-) 

    The day ended with ice cream cones and a sheep dog demonstration (one of my favorites from the '06 Festival) — without a doubt, the most memorable Saturday in months!

    Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival 2009 Sheep Dog Demonstration

  • Another Alpaca Hat for Andy

    Two years ago, I made similar baby alpaca hats for Andy and I:  http://www.madhuknitsandcooks.com/madhu_knits_and_cooks/2007/04/great_lightweig.html.  Andy loved his hat so much that he asked me to make another, using some beautiful brown alpaca we picked up at the 2007 Midwest Folk Art and Fiber Festival.   This natural-colored alpaca is from Frontier Fiber Mill in Indiana.

    Brown Black Alpaca for Andy Gloves

    Although we initially purchased this yarn with the intention of making Andy some gloves, Andy decided this past year that he wanted another hat instead.  I used the same design as the 2006 alpaca hat, and ended up making the hat in the round on two #1, 24-inch Addi Turbos.  I ended up having to frog the first version of the hat that I made because of course I ended up getting my gauge swatch a little wrong by not knitting my swatch in the round and using bamboo DPNs.   I ended up re-casting on with 120 stitches to make a hat that after blocking was 10 inches wide by 8 inches long.  Despite the wear of frogging of the first hat, the yarn produced a wonderfully soft, strong hat and I definitely look forward to using it again.

    Andy's Alpaca Hat Close Up

    And despite finishing the hat in April, part of my longstanding "tradition" of finishing knitwear in the wrong seasons, Andy was still able to get a few uses out of it before putting it away from a hot D.C. spring and summer!  Now I just need to figure out what to do with the other skein! 

    Andy's Alpaca Hat Modeled

  • Theo in a Handknit Sweater — Potentially the Cutest Item I Have Ever Knit

    Theo_sweater_modeled

    That’s right — I knit that.  That super-cute sweater.    I made it! 

    The story:  Several months ago, I went over to my former co-worker Emily’s house to see her and her husband, as well as their baby son Theo.  Theo was so nice and cute, and I thought it would be great to knit him something so I brought the knitting book One Skein to Emily’s to see what she and Ben wanted.  Not surprisingly, they picked the super-cute kid’s colorblock sweater.  I got a little delayed finishing the socks that Danielle has, but thankfully Theo was only 1 when we picked out the baby sweater and the smallest size in the book is a size 2.  I finally started the sweater this spring, and was able to give it to Theo a few weeks ago — and he’s still not fully a size 2 so the sweater should last through the fall (I hope!).  Details about the yarn and the project follow the next picture.

    Theo_sweater_flat

    Yarn:  I used Gedifra Living superwash yarn that I bought from Elann — my first time using Elann (and yes, breaking my longstanding yarn diet).  I used one ball of each of these colors:  Cafe au Lait, Mahogany, Winter Squash, Devon Cream, and Ginger.

    Needles:  I used a size 10 circular needle for the project, and used size 10 dpns for the attached I-cord edging.

    Buttons:  I picked up two wood buttons at Joann’s — but unfortunately don’t remember what the brand is!  They are about 7/8 of an inch each.  I did not use a hidden snap for the sweater.

    Final product:  The front left and right panels ended up being about 0.5 – 0.75 inches longer than the pattern stated, and the back was maybe a 0.5 inch wider than the pattern prescribed — all the better to last Theo longer!

    Theo_sweater_modeled_smiling_copy

  • I Successfully Teach a Co-Worker How to Knit!

    Jenny_knitting

    A few months back, one of my colleagues, Jenny, asked me if I could teach her how to knit.  I was so overjoyed by the possibility of teaching one of my coworkers to knit, it actually took me a few days to calm down and actually bring in some needles and yarn for Jenny to get started.  Within 2 really, really short lessons, Jenny was knitting up a storm — she eventually finished half a ball of peaches and cream cotton yarn in a garter stitch swatch and clearly was ready for a real project. 

    With two other coworkers, Andy and Sydney, the designer of the wonderful Obama scarf on the blog, we traveled to the My Sister Knits yarn store (a recommended place for anyone in the Chicago area) in Beverly, a neighborhood on the far southwest side of Chicago.   Although Jenny wanted to start with a baby blanket as her first project, we convinced her to start with a more manageable scarf pattern.   She immediately learned the three additional stitches needed for the scarf — the purl, yarn over and knitting two together stitches — and is making amazing progress on the scarf (even fixing her mistakes on her own!).  I can’t wait to see the finished product, and see Jenny start her baby blanket!

    Jennys_scarf_in_progress

  • A Wonderful Obama Scarf!

    Sydneys_obama_scarf_3

    One of my co-workers’ wife, Sydney, knit up this fantastic Obama logo scarf.  It’s the first knit item I have seen with the Obama logo, and I think Sydney did an amazing job.  I can’t wait to replicate it at some point, though I’m sure I’ll mess up many times before I am actually able to successfully knit it!

    Sydneys_obama_scarf_close_up

  • My First Pair of Socks Knit on Two Circular Needles at the Same Time

    Several years ago, I was browsing Amazon (or perhaps it was another site?) for a birthday gift for my friend Kirsten, a fellow knitter.  I stumbled upon great reviews for this book that teaches knitters how to knit socks on two circular needles.  Of course, it was Cat Bordhi’s Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles.  I ended up buying the book for my friend, but I never thought about picking it up myself until I listened to a Knit Picks podcast several months ago that mentioned the technique, as well as knitting two socks at the same time.  I finally decided that maybe I should put my dpns to rest and try out this new technique with some hand-dyed Herdwick yarn I picked up at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in 2006 (and I am so upset with myself from losing the details of who I bought it from!  If I find them, I’ll update this post). 

    Danielle_modeling_socks

    For my first pair of socks knit at the same time on two circular needles, I followed Bordhi’s Cable-top socks, though I ended up omitting the cable top.  Overall, I thought the pattern was fairly easy to follow though it took me about 3 times to properly cast on and start the socks with the "Turning the Toe" technique — I definitely needed a lot of patience to do this correctly and move on to the rest of the socks.  It also took a lot of patience for me to figure out how to do two socks at the same time, but I found a few helpful websites, especially this one: http://www.az.com/~andrade/knit/twocirculars.html.  And Danielle, my colleague who I gave the socks, reports that the turning the toe technique did in fact produce a wonderfully comfortable toe portion of the sock.

    A few issues with the pattern:  I found the pattern to make socks that were way too large for my feet (I wear a size 7.5 shoe), even though I had followed the 60 percent of foot guidance for the length (the socks ended up being about 1 1/2 inches too long after completing the gusset/turning the heel).   I used size 3 circulars to get the correct gauge.  The socks picture above and below are 11 inches long , 10 inches from the top of the ribbing to the bottom of the sock and 6 inches from the top to the ankle.  There is a 1 1/4 inch double rib at the top of the socks.  I’ll have to remember to scale down the patterns a bit when I make other socks in the book. 

    And knitting two socks at the same time with two circular needles:  I took this project on the road a lot and I found that I couldnt find a good way to store the needles/yarn so that it wouldn’t get tangled up — two working socks on two longer circular needles with two balls of yarn ended up taking up a lot of space!  I also knit them over a period of 6 months or so, so I cant quite accurately comment on how fast this technique is, but knitting two socks at the same time was FANTASTIC — no more feeling disappointed by having only one finished sock! 

    I look forward to starting another pair soon, especially after seeing Danielle’s reaction to getting this pair!

    Danielle_with_socks

     

  • Doctor Who Scarf for Kara

    The second project for my YLS public interest auction donation was a multi-colored scarf based on Rose’s scarf in the BBC Doctor Who series (the new version).   I used five different colors of the Plymouth Handpaint variegated 100% wool yarn to make the scarf.   I also used this great pattern from Jedigurl, http://www.jedigurl.com/crafts/rosescarf (first pattern on the page).  I also watched for the first time this weekend the new version of BBC’s Doctor Who, which is a fun show that I recommend for folks who like sci-fi. 

    Karas_scarf