Mandy Moore's Blog, page 107
October 26, 2011
WWW: "Do Knit Disturb", World Record Knitting, and a "Jumper Pouffe"
Love it!
Some knitting, some crochet – but still entirely yarny: a hotel in Brighton, UK, has unveiled its latest theme room: "Do Knit Disturb". The work of designer Kate Jenkins, it's guaranteed to keep you warm – and amused – during your stay. Great photos at the link and more details here.
A 71-year-old in the UK has broken his own Guinness World Record for the longest piece of "French Knitting" (also known as Spool Knitting). Over 20 years, he's created a piece over 16 miles long, and is still working on it. I adore the video of the town's mayor being pressed into service to help measure the piece.
Amusing collision: the fall edition of the Creativ Festival was held in Toronto this past weekend, at the downtown Convention Centre. All was well and good until members of a local crochet guild, the Toronto HookUps, got misdirected, and ended up in the exhibit hall next door, which was hosting the "Everything To Do With Sex Show". Article slightly NSFW.
A NY-area blog suggests three reasons why it's better to knit your Hallowe'en costume…
Excellent for cats.
And if you're looking for something to do with a worn-out or moth-eaten old sweater, consider turning it into a "jumper pouffe" – a knitting-covered footstool. How-to instructions at the link.
Update on a story that was making the rounds last week: vets helping with the clean-up after an oil spill off the coast of New Zealand had originally asked for knitters to contribute some sweaters to help protect the skin of penguins who have lost their feathers due to oil damage. They report that they have received more than they can use. This reminds us of an important thing: before you contribute your hard work to any cause, please do check with the organization to confirm what they need.
Knitters in Oregon wishing to contribute to a good cause are encouraged to get involved in an initiative being run by the shop "All About Yarn", knitting hats and scarves for residents of a local women's shelter.
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October 25, 2011
Spinning Tuesdays: Corespinning with a Spindle?
In a recent class I took someone talked about Sarah Anderson's method of corespinning that she calls Wrap and Roll.
The basic idea is to wrap your core on a spindle, suspend it between your knees as you spin and let the extra twist put into your core yarn untwist via the spindle. It was mentioned in passing, but the idea kept knocking on my brain, so I went and looked it up on You Tube.
Sure enough, I found a video, not by Sarah herself but by someone who had taken her class.
I sat down and tried it. I knew it would be fiddly to get started, so I sat out in the sun and tried to just go with it.
I used 2-ply laceweight as my core and wound it on a favorite Indigo Hound spindle.
Indigo Hound spindle wrapped with core yarn
After a few false starts, I got it working. The spindle unspun the extra twist I put into the core.
Spindle hanging between my knees as I spin
I didn't spin with my knees quite so far apart, I did that for the picture. And no, sadly, it's not that sunny today.
I made a mistake in choosing my spindle for this project. My spindle has a relatively long shaft and the Sidekick has a lowish orifice. I should have used the lightest, shortest shaft spindle I had because I spent more time than I wanted unwinding and rehooking the core.
But the method works
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A little over twisted
The yarn was a little over twisted, somewhere in between the regular core and the unspun core. I think that extra twist was me not being a very relaxed spinner with this method.
I love the idea and now really want to take a class with Sarah Anderson. I can't imagine what I could learn from the brain that came up with this!
October 24, 2011
Rhinebeck Roundup
Baaaaaa.....
Holy sheep!
I spent last weekend at the Dutchess County Sheep and Wool Festival, more popularly known as Rhinebeck, after the town where it's held.
It's an amazing festival of all things fibery. Running since 1980, the event began as an agricultural fair, and over the years has become the key event in the fall fiber calendar in the north east. It has animals to see, food to eat and buy, and all things yarny.
So many beautiful yarns to see, fondle, buy and fight for…
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That's a lot of fabulous socks-to-be.
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Perfect sun-drenched colors.
This is as close as I could get to Miss Babs' limited edition Rhinebeck colorway.
So much amazing fiber:
Alpaca!
If this won't make you want to be a spinner, nothing will...
Jillian, this one's for you!
There were random acts of knitting:
Mittens, the ideal portable knitting project.
There were random acts of spinning:
Great coordination and balance!
Matching one's hair to one's fiber is the latest fashion statement.
Random acts of Knittyspotting:
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Fishy, fishy, fishy, fish.
Citrusy Citron
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Not orange, but definitely Oranje!
There were alpacas
Alpaca parade!
friendly goats
Making friends
sheep, of course
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Having ensured their fleece has gone to a good home...
and a snuggly cashmere goat.
Cashmere is just as soft and nice in pre-yarn form.
And of course, no fall fair would be complete without a pumpkin or two….
Fall at is best.
This was my first visit, and it certainly won't be my last.
October 19, 2011
WWW: Contest Winner, Watery Yarnbombs, More Knitting Men
The winner of the Hiya Hiya needles is Katie from Austin, Texas. Thanks to Hiya Hiya North America for a wonderful giveaway!
Decorating the waterfront.
Visitors to Auckland, New Zealand, attending the Rugby World Cup – or indeed those with no interest in rubgy at all! – have been enjoying a number of arts and culture events as part of Art Week Auckland, the Real NZ Festival, and a number of other great events. A key event was the Woolly Walkalong, Knitty Graffity's large scale yarnbomb around the Devonport Wharf. Ninety knitters from nine countries contributed – pieces included a giant squid and Cornish pasties from England's Graffiti Grannies.
Three Irish Girls' owner and creative director, Sharon McMahon.
A nice profile of yarn dyer "Three Irish Girls" in a local Duluth, Minnesota newspaper. The article provides a great peek into the business of being an indie yarn dyer and being a full-time yarnista… And just look at those colors!
A 20-foot yarn-bombed boat embarked on its maiden voyage this past weekend as part of an arts festival in Bristol, UK.
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We want everyone to do it...
There have been a spate of reports of male knitters of late… some of them have a bemused or even surprised tone – this Guardian article, although overall very positive and supportive, still seems to find it remarkable that knitting has crossed the gender divide.
Others, more pleasingly, just accept it as a fact of life… For example, knitting gets a very casual mention in the list of hobbies of reknowned classical conductor Colin Davis.
And then there's knitting so that the men can show their colors: the John Lewis shop in Sheffield hosted a knitting class especially to teach men how to knit so that they could make their own scarves to celebrate derby day in the city – when the city's two football teams play against each other. I can only assume that knitters would have been given a choice of appropriate colors for the scarves, depending on which team they support, Sheffield United or Sheffield Wednesday…
Do Canadian sheep have an accent?
If you're in Ontario, and didn't make it to Rhinebeck this past weekend, the Woodstock Fleece and Festival takes place this Saturday at the Woodstock Fairgrounds, near London, Ontario.
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October 18, 2011
Spinning Tuesdays: The Core of Corespun
On my path to Corespinning Enlightenment – a balanced corespun yarn that I can knit with, I am exploring all of the ways that I've been taught in classes , heard about or run across in life or on the internet.
To compare the core and spinning styles of corespinning, I'll be spinning the different styles of corespinning on my Sidekick using the largest whorl that came with the wheel. I'll be using the same fiber in each example too, BFL top from Three Waters Farm.
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Three Waters Farm BFL, Sangria and City Nights
First up corespinning on a fine 2-ply, two different ways.
Here's what I used for a core:
Jaggerspun Maine Line
Because spinners are a curious bunch, I'll show you how I hold my hands when I corespin.
I put the fiber supply on my left side and the core on my right side.
I let the core run over the palm of my hand
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When I spin I rest the core and fiber on my index finger
When I need to draft, I drop my right thumb and hold the core and spun fiber briefly, while I draft with my left hand
I know there are spinners who don't like to fluff, pre draft or attenuate their fibers. I love to fluff fibers, for me it leads to a more even yarn.
For corespinning I strip my top into thirds and fluff it open. I even attentuated just a little.
Stripped and fluffed
I spun 2 samples of yarn this week. Remember, my goal is to get as balanced of a corespun to knit with that I can get. One sample I spun with the core right off of the cone, which further twists an already plied (twisted) core. One sample I unplied the core by running it through my wheel in the opposite direction it was plied. Even fresh off of the wheel – the difference was dramatic.
My biggest challenge is to treadle slowly enough to not overtwist the core, but have enough twist in the core to grab the fiber. I get in to the zone of working my hands and find that soon my feet are going at a regular spinning rhythm instead of a slower corespinning rhythm.
On the left - regular spun core, on the right - unplied core
I don't set my corespun under tension. I want to knit with it, and I find a squiggly, pig tailed yarn made to be straight by setting it with tension or weight – springs right back to it's curly ways with the slightest re-wetting. Just like my hair in humidity.
I soak my yarn in hot water for a few minutes, snap it on my hands a couple of times then hang it outside.
The regular core yarn on the left would skew mightily when knit. The unplied core yarn on the right would play well with knitting.
Have you tried corespinning yet? What tips do you have? What do you use the yarn for?
October 12, 2011
WWW: Rhinebeck; Men Who Knit & The Dinosaurs They Knit For
We're pleased to announce the winners of our Stitch Light contest:
Christina in New York, Paulette in Saskatchewan, Rachel in Texas, Michelle in Oregon and Carol in Connecticut. Thank you to Elizabeth at Stitch Light for the prizes!
Say hello to our sheepy friends!
Knitters around the north-east of North America are getting excited about the Dutchess County Sheep and Wool Festival this weekend, otherwise known as Rhinebeck. A major highlight of the knitters' and spinners' calendar, this annual festival is a feast of animals, fiber, yarn, knitting goodies – and food! The weather promises to be lovely this year, and the leaves are wearing their fabulous fall colors.
Full of tech editor-y wisdom...
Knitty tech editor Kate will be at Rhinebeck , in the Cooperative Press booth, talking about her upcoming book, "Beyond Knit and Purl"!
The book is designed to help knitters grow from being confident with their needles to being confident wioth patterns. In it, key questions are answered, e.g.: "What's ease", "What does it mean when it says to decrease evenly across?", "What skills do I need to knit socks?", and "what's the big deal about not twisting the round?" Visit the Cooperative Press website for more info and to pre-order.
If you're there, stop by to say hello!
Local celebrities are joining the effort
A group of knitters in Indianapolis, led by the owner of Broad Ripple Knits, is knitting a giant scarf for a local dinosaur to wear during the February Superbowl festivities. The scarf is being knitted with 3/8" braided blue and white rope and using broomsticks as needles.
Yvonne the dinosaur is a statue at the Indianapolis Children's Museum, and she'll proudly wear the scarf throughout the Superbowl festivities. Knitters are also creating scarves to be given to volunteers who are helping out with all the celebrations in the city that week.
The Independent in the UK reports some shocking! news: men knit. And they find it relaxing!
And a male staff writer at the New York Daily News reports the same news: knitting is fun and relaxing. Welcome to the fold!
Police in Launceston, UK, reports that they have "no plans to hunt down the culprit" responsible for a recent yarn-bombing incident.
A radio show in Brisbane, Australia, reports on an initiative to knit "pockets" for baby possums.
October 11, 2011
Spinning Tuesdays: Phat Fiber Corespun
Remember this pile of fiber from my Phat Fiber Bollywood box?
Almost 8 ounces of Bollywood inspired fiber
It's become about 220 yards of corespun yarn
Closer on the yarn:
Wrappy goodness
the swatch:
I want to wrap around you
I am well and truly hooked on the corespun. The knitting was unexpected like a lot of knitting with handspun. I used needles at least a size or two bigger than I would with commercially spun yarn of the same size. I think handspun yarn takes deeper breaths and fills up more space. The yarn I've made is going to become a scarf with a bit of shaping, maybe crescent, so it hangs on a little.
Over the next few weeks here on the blog, I'm going to go back through all of the ways I learned to corespun this year, so you can find your favorite way to wrap up your yarn.
October 10, 2011
What's On Our Needles: Mittens for Felting
October descends and two things are inescapable for me: winter is coming where I live, and my hands get cold. I suffer from something called Raynaud's phenomenon. It's a circulatory problem, and when my hands and feed experience cold the blood vessels spasm and the blood flow is restricted. It's not very dangerous, but it's unpleasant, and I work very hard to stop attacks by keeping my hands and feet warm.
Keeping me warm through to December.
This means that I start wearing mittens in October, and often have them on through April.
Now, it is also an inescapable truth that hand-knit mittens for very cold climates need to be well-thought out. A single layer of knitted fabric has holes in it that can let a biting wind through.
A stranded colorwork mitten is much warmer… the unused strand creates a lining, which keeps the wind out, and adds a layer to trap warmth. My Morse Code mitts were designed with this in mind…
These sorts of mitts usually serve me nicely to late December, when the temperature starts dropping below about -10 degrees C during the day. At that point, however, I have to resort to commercially bought mittens.
As a knitter, this always seems a bit sad to me…. surely I should be able to keep myself warm with the work of own hands.
This year, as the weather has started to turn, I've been experimenting… I figure that if a stranded colorwork fabric has 2 layers to trap heat, I could go one step further and increase the windproof-ness of them by felting them.
So I knitted comically large mittens…
Oversized and ready for felting.
With some yarn leftover from other projects (hence the rather odd color combo), I worked a pair of stranded colorwork mittens that I planned to felt.
I then spent an evening weaving in ends, and then visited my friend with the top-loading washing machine. (I have a front-loader, and it's a great washing machine but terrible felter due to the limited agitation.), and felted 'em.
Smaller and windproof. Possibly also bulletproof.
They're much thicker now, and I am quite certain entirely windproof. Very happy with them.
They are still a bit oversized, however… there's just enough space for me to create a small, light lining mitten in a fine and warm fiber to wear inside. Perhaps a laceweight silk and mohair…
I'm hoping these will keep me going until January at least!
October 5, 2011
WWW: Contest! Socktober; Knitting Group Donates 100,000th item to Charity
Very handy!
Bonus contest! Because we love our readers and we love getting cool products into your hands…
We're giving away a complete set of Hiya Hiya Bamboo Interchangeable Needles, both the small and the large set.
The small interchangeable set includes 7 sets of tips in sizes from 2-8US (2.75-5mm). The large interchangeable set includes 6 sets of tips in sizes from 9-15US (5.5 – 10 mm). Each set also has 4 cables (2 x 26″, 1 x 34″ and 1 x 42″ cables) a case and needle grips to help with tightening.
1 person will win this package, valued at $159.80.
The usual rules apply for our giveaway: Leave a comment on this post before midnight, eastern time, on Sunday, October 9, 2011. A comment will be chosen at random to answer a skill testing question. If s/he answers correctly s/he will win our prize.
Thanks to Hiya Hiya North America for donating this prize!
that is a LOT of fish!
We heard this week from Kimberly Ligocki, the manager of K2Tog, a local yarn store in Albany, CA. This summer, the K2tog team embarked on a community knitting project that involves the Fish Hat as published on Knitty.
K2tog and its knitters have promised to knit a unique fish hat for every student at the local Richmond High School who score proficient or better on their state math exam. GET IT? "ProFISHent". To date, the knitters have made more than 80 hats and will give them away at a ceremony on Oct 12.
Richmond High is an inner-city school in a city with one of the highest crime rates in the Bay Area. The K2Tog team have embarked on this project to convey their caring support towards the students of this troubled school. And Knitty is so glad that a project we published can help do something important.
To celebrate the launch of eight of STC/Melanie Falick Books bestselling titles as e-books Open Road Media created short video profiles on three of their authors: Andrea Berman Price, Joelle Hoverson and Melanie Falick. The videos are lovely, definitely worth a viewing.
A knitting group in Chesterfield County, Virginia, announces that they have donated their 100,000th item to charity. Amazing! The group has been active for 10 years, and donates to numerous hospitals, homeless shelters, and police and emergency responders.
Color us intrigued… Rockhurst University, in Kansas City, is setting up a Halloween-themed "Mystical Math Room" as a way to engage students and the public in mathematical learning. Activities will include, apparently, a Haunted Batting Cage, Mathemagician, Sudoku and Crazy Mathematical Knitting.
It's Socktober. What are you knitting for your feet? Need any ideas… ?
Wonderful words.
Friend of Knitty, Rachael Herron, has just released "A Life In Stitches", a memoir about life and knitting. In this interview published in the San Francisco Chronicle, Rachael talks about her knitting life and her writing life.
October 4, 2011
Spinning Tuesdays: Double Marl
For someone who doesn't care for the look of marled yarns, I spend a lot of time playing with them. I think I like the idea that it's an easy way to blend color.
During my class with Amy King she showed us what I like to call a double marl. It's fun, it's easy and the results are gorgeous.
I chose 2 variegated BFL/silk Abstract Fibers tops. One that I liked and one, not so much.
Abstract Fibers BFL/Silk
I stripped the fiber into pinky width strips
Pinky-sized strips
I held the two strips together as a spun my singles, creating a marled single. Then plied the singles together in a 2-ply. The effect is densely mixed up colors. My favorite kind of marl so far.
A little bit of gorgeous
Look at the difference between a regular marl and double marl.
Double marl on the left, regular marl on the right
I like this way of marling so much I spun 8 ounces. I think next time I'll choose colorways that have fewer colors in common, just to see what happens.
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