Life LackaDaisiCal

I have the first of two finished 2016 projects to share with you today! The FairIsle Patch Cushion, designed by Marie Wallin using Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift In this photo, you can see how big and squishy this cushion is - the finished knitted piece measured 23"! I found the perfect fabric for the backing! Marie is offering this project as part of her day workshop program  in 2017! The colours used in this cushion are amazing! Long term knit friends will remember that I sold Jamieson's Shetland   yarnsthrough "She Ewe Knits" for 8 years! It was wonderful to get re-aquainted with this gorgeous yarn.  Each colour is a sophisticated blend of shades... Shaela, Sholmit, Bramble, Thistledown,  Tundra, Fog, Paprika, Camel, Blue Lovat, Yellow Ochre, Moss, Mooskit and Sunset! Ahh, the memories! Fog got a lot of attention! The workshop knitters adopted it as their word of choice when dealing with a tricky situation in their knitting... "Oh Fog!"...

"easy fairisle knits" Martin has created a  collection of contemporary simplified fairisle designs. 14 designs including hats, socks, scarves and cushions plus a slipover, bag, throw and garland  - all with only two colours in a row. I love "Kitten and Stripe" scarf featured on the cover! (Check out that bag too!) Look at the "Soft Stripes Gloves and Hat" combo! A band of fair isle...then some fabulous stripes! Great "Plaid and Diamond" socks with fair isle on the leg portion only! Love those boots too Martin! And look at the collection of pillows, all with fair isle motifs  to brighten up your home! (L-R Little Circles, Paper Dolls and Simple Spots) Want to see more of the designs in "easy fair isle knits" - click on through to the KnitRowan web site! Rowan Yarns Felted Tweed DK is the yarn used for these projects. Felted Tweed is o ne of my favourite Rowan yarns - yes it is! Why?  Because it comes in  28 g...

Look at this simple row of turquoise stranded stitches....they look a bit topsy-turvey, a bit wonky, some are up, some are down..... Let me help you get your stranding on the "straight and narrow"! When I say "the straight and narrow", I am talking about the position of your background and pattern yarns. Some stranded knitters call this yarn dominance....but yarn is very docile, it follows you wherever you ask it to go!  Look at this example of two rows of simple stranded knitting - this photo of the "back side" shows you perfectly what I am referring to....the pink is going along it's "straight and narrow" path...while that red, hmmm, it does a little turn and switches position half way across the row.  Did it do that on it's own?  NO! It just did what the knitter told it to! To keep things simple here, I have used the cream yarn as the background,  and a variety of colours for the pattern stitches in my photos! The yarn used...

Hi Anne:  You don't know me, but I love your patterns.  At the beginning of the year, I tackled your Fair Isle Hibiscus, and I love it.  I completed it for a dog show in Alaska in March.  I show Cairn Terriers, and I was working hard to make sure that my baby girl, Ivy, would finish her championship with me in your sweater.  It worked -- I'm wearing the sweater in Ivy's championship photo!   Then I entered it in our local County Fair (this week), and it took Best in Show of the handknitted adult sweaters.  Wow!  I'm so proud and wanted to thank you for the lovely pattern and the lovely challenge.  It was my firs attempt at steeks!! Have a great day! Heidi http://heidishandmadehappiness.blogspot.com/ Then, from LiisaB via Ravelry.... Wanted you to know that your lovely Hibiscus Cardigan pattern earned me a Grand Champion AND a Best of Show Ribbon at the Montgomery County Fair this weekend. The judges were gobsmacked and immed. came to Rav to f...

OK, it's looking good so far......... and the pattern lines up from the body to the sleeve - almost perfectly!

Do you know how hard it is to take your own photo -- Here's the best one I took of my finished Roscalie vest....... Seriously! LOL!!! Happy Knitting!

You might think with all the Martha Grimes book posts, that I've been neglecting my knitting......well, no I haven't LOL!!! The Roscalie vest is progressing nicely.......when I'd finished the body I did have a little stall before I started the armhole and V-neck shaping. This is one of the points where I usually get stalled....along with sleeves (a whole other issue -- I still have to put sleeves on my Mossbank...and I think there that is where my Water Lily pullover is stalled too) ......in this case because I am deviating from the pattern as written. Roscalie is no different -- I wanted the shoulders to not stick out over my shoulder line -- and with an inch of ribbing on the neckline and armhole side. So I've adjusted the armhole shaping, and the front neckline, and the back neckline........and have ended up with what looks like a very slim looking armhole......so I was a little concerned.......but all turned out well. I had to think....this is the first v-neck I...

Remember this? Check it out here.... http://froggiemeanie.blogspot.com/

Fair Isle Knitting Patterns Reproducing the known work of Robert Williamson by Mary Macgregor ISBN 978 I 904746 49 9 published by The Shetland Times Ltd. Gremista, Lerwick Shetland Tel: 011 44 1595 695531 E-mail: bookshop@shetland-times.co.uk They list a web site, but it isn't valid!!! There is a warning in this book....it's not about technique or the history of fair isle knitting. It's strictly a black/white reproduction of some typical motifs used for fair isle knitting in Shetland. I got mine direct from the Shetland Times -- it's hot off the presses - and not shown in the 2008 catalogue! If you are into designing your own you might want to add a copy to your personal library. As I said, you can never have too many motif references! Happy Knitting!

When I saw the cover of Piecework, I loved the little Fair Isle bonnet by the Fair Isle guru Alice Starmore. I was trying to figure out where I could get Piecework, when I walked into my LYS and there it was! I couldn't believe it! Although I have removed the sleeves of the hubby's Thwaite Jacket in preparation for shortening..........and I had intended to finish this before moving on.......I couldn't resist. I obviously didn't use the yarns called for.....I used Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift. You can see in the photo that I decided to make the centre highlight rows a little darker blue than in the original as to me it seemed just a bit too light - personal choice. The ear flaps were done with short rows, and were attached to the hat after the rib was done. So I used Royal, Cobalt, Clyde Blue and Teviot for the blues, Madder and Crimson for the reds, Yellow Ochre, Mustard and Gold for the golds. I quite like how it came out.......now to find a baby to model it!

Before I went on vacation, I turned my comments on to be moderated -- I didn't do this intentionally, so this morning when I logged on to Blogger, I found all these comments that needed moderation....sorry about that. Thanks again for all of the kind words about Autumn Rose -- here are my responses to a few comments left.... Yes Mamacate, this sweater looks great on a (ahem) full figured woman. I knit the 43" sweater, and I actually would need 45"....not bragging here just stating the facts.......so I recommend NO EASE! This is a figure fitting sweater -- and as a sweater, it has some give......if you have a 41" chest measurement, make 41 - don't go up a size. This sweater needs to be just right at the bust or the neckline will gape. Usual Disclaimer here -- this is my opinion only, but is based on having knit the sweater. (When I knit the largest size, I thought that if it didn't fit me now, it might some day LOL! - forever hopeful.) EllyMae commented on th...

It's done.....well, I think I'll give it a steam press to set it now that I know it fits. After steaming, I'll clean up the neckline steek and tack it down. But other than that, it's done! I was trying to find something to wear with it -- the model in the book has an orange top underneath.......even though I love orange, did I have fine scoop neck orange camisole type top - NO! Brown, yes Turquoise, yes Both look good in their own way. It's funny how the shades in this sweater work with other colours. DH loves it -- he said "finally, a figure flattering fair isle". Daisy seemed to like it too.....she loves getting her photo taken so here's one with Daisy. OK, I'm not big on the photo thing, but I wanted anyone out there contemplating Autumn Rose to see that it does look ok on someone that isn't stick thin (I'm definitely not stick thin). It can be adjusted -- not so low a neckline, not as nipped in at the waist, whatever you want. Next proj...

What a low neckline you have! Cutting the Autumn Rose neckline steek.......scary! I tried this on..yes it is low but with a little rib and definitely a camisole or some other little top underneath....well, I should be presentable LOL!

Ricki left a comment... Anne.. I was just watching Lucy Neatby's DVD (Knitting Essentials 2) on steeking. She changes colors inside of the steek - and when she sews the front steeks - she brushes the ends out of the way so they won't catch in the seam - and she never weaves them in - just clips them off. Does that make sense? Do you think that would work for Autumn Rose? I HATE to weave! Ricki If you are knitting a cardigan, you start/stop the yarns in the middle of the centre front steek. That's what Lucy is demonstrating here. When I got to the front neckline -- you set up a front neckline steek, and at that point you change the beginning/end of the round to the middle of the front neckline. So, here it is just a matter of getting the ends out of the way when you cut -- and with Shetland Spindrift, there is no need to do anything else to the steek. But, when knitting a pullover, as in the case of Autumn Rose -- you start/stop your yarns at an underarm "seam" and...

That's how I like to think of all of the ends when you start/stop shades used in a fair isle. Sometimes I weave the new shade in and then weave the old shade out as I go around.....but Autumn Rose changes both shades at the same time......and I didn't want to weave two strands in and two strands out at the same time, if you know what I mean..... So, I just knit merrily away -- knowing that some day (soon) I'd have to deal with the ends. It's not so bad -- just sit down with your sharp needle, a small pair of scissors, and a good movie, and get weaving! Once I've got a section finished, I clip off the excess yarn leaving about 1/4 inch to allow for any ease needed when blocking. Now I have to graft the underarm stitches together. Then, cut the steek! I'm hoping Autumn Rose will be finished this weekend. Happy Knitting

Beth asked about the Autumn Rose chart: "I was wondering how you figured out what color to use and how many rows we knit with each color? The chart in the book is gray and white and only lists the two yarn colors to use." Yes the chart is in black and white -- grey boxes for pattern shades and white boxes for the background shades. See the table on the right -- two columns where it tells you what shades to use on which row -- what to use for the grey squares and what to use for the white squares? Look at how the table lines are and you'll see how the shades are designate for the motifs. This isn't done for the whole chart -- when I copied the chart and enlarged it, I made a couple of copies, and cut out an additional shade legend table.....and pasted it to the part of the chart that didn't have the legend on it. This will all be quite confusing for those of you who haven't seen the chart -- but trust me, once you have a good look at it, you'll figure it ou...

This design is different than any other Fair Isle out there -- except Eunny Jang's other fair isle Venezia which appeared in Interweave Knits (pause while I run downstairs and get it...) Winter 2006. To allow for shaping, Eunny designates a side stitch that is purled throughout, to provide a line that subtly disappears into your knitting, but provides a marker for your side shaping. In the case of Venezia, the sleeves were knit in the round to the underarm point, then a steek was established to enable you to continue knitting the sleeve cap in the round. The sleeve cap steek is cut open and the sleeve is sewn into the body to finish. In the case of Autumn Rose, the sleeve is knit to the underarm, and is joined with the body at that point to enable you to knit the top of the sweater in one piece. Think of those icelandic sweaters we all made -- with the big patterned yoke. Autumn Rose has raglan shaping between the body and the sleeve. The sleeve top is straight and becomes the shou...

Sounds so much better than "Joined at the Underarms"......doesn't it? But that's where we're at......we've joined the sleeves to the body...stitches at the underarms on both the sleeve and body are live on spare bits of yarn waiting to be grafted together -- while the body and sleeves are now being knit together in the round while shaping the neckline and the shoulder seam. Very interesting.......you can see that Caelee was immediately interested. It's rare that Caelee bothers with my knitting, but she seems to like Autumn Rose and plunked right down and started eating the Old Gold. Great shade -- she does have good taste! You'll never guess what arrived yesterday in the mail - update tomorrow! Happy Knitting!

This arrived on Friday. It's been a busy weekend.....I've updated She Ewe Knits with the details of the designs that are done in this new yarn in the Simply Shetland 4 book. You can see the details here Fabulous shades with terrific Scottish names like Glenbuchat and Drumlanrig. Another great thing about this yarn is that used double, it can be substituted in designs that use the Jamieson's Shetland Heather yarn.....so you can have a wool or silk/wool version of various designs. Next I'll be puttng the info on the web site for the Shetland Heather designs in the book.....and yes, I'll have an Autumn Rose update later today or early tomorrow.

Here's the front neckline steek set up -- only 10 rows to go and I'll be putting the sleeves and body together! Happy Knitting!