Time to Knit - Charity Challenge 2018 Part 2

Time to Knit - Charity Challenge 2018 Part 2

As promised in the last blog here is the same Baby Top only in the Green

Green Baby Top

This is the finished item complete with ends woven in and buttons added. I looked for some Green buttons but they didn’t look right so I just added some clear ones.

Green Baby Top Bottom Width

Unlike the one I knitted in the Dollymix this one I knitted using my natural tension. The final Width was 14.5cm. Therefore it is 1 cm wider than the first one.

Green Baby Top Height

The Height of the garment came out at 13.5cm.The Natural coloured one was only 12cms. Therefore it is 1.5cm longer from neck to bottom.

Baby Tops Like for Like

In the photograph above I have placed the Natural one over the top of the Green to show the difference.

Natural Mittens

I had a little yarn left over so I decided to make some mittens. I had great problems trying to get a pattern as they were mostly for new-borns or 0-3 months rather than preemie.

Unfortunately the tape slipped whilst I was trying to photograph the pair. I believe that when the Rib is folded they should be about 6-6.5cm. However I have clearly missed a row here so I thought rather than measure I would count rows for the Green mittens.

The picture below shows what is known as ‘a right pig’s breakfast’. The mitten on the left hand side is the one I knitted first. It looks a bit messy but that is the angle I photographed it at.

Green Mittens

The mitten on the right hand side is what I knitted last. Now I admit it looks tidier but there are two different types of mistakes in it. If you look at the Rib you can clearly see that I have somehow managed to miss a stitch somewhere and the Rib has slid across.

The second mistake was a real blinder. You knit the rib with 3.25 needles. Then on the next part you change to 4.5cm needles. Now I did this but when I came to cast off I found I was back on the 3.25 needles.

How I managed to do this I have no idea. The end result was I ended up with a loose slip pattern and a tight slip pattern. Oh well you live and learn.

Wrap Up Winter! It is now Spring 2018 Part 3

Wrap Up Winter! It is now Spring 2018 Part 3

First on all I apologise for cutting the last blog short. It is the first time I have had to do that. In the last blog I had just reached talking about the Brooches.

Aran Beret and Brooch

After knitting the Aran Brooch it was time to add a bit of bling. All the Brooches I have made are slightly different. However this one is unusual because as well as the normal beads I add I found a sparkle and I couldn’t resist putting it in the centre.

Black Beret and Brooch

In order to cut down on endless photographs I haven’t taken a picture with the measurements but I can state that the Black Beret is the same height and width as the Aran.

As to the Brooch I am not sure what planet I was on whilst knitting it but as well as the mistake regarding the missing stitches I made another blunder. This time I got the correct amount of stitches but I did a purl row instead of a knit and I didn’t realise until I was about to cast off. Therefore I had to undo the whole lot and start again.

Scarf Mistake

I am not sure if it was the colour that was throwing me out but I also messed up knitting the Scarf. Somehow I managed to gain another stitch. Normally this doesn’t matter in stocking stitch and I can usually quickly adjust it.

However since I was knitting Rib it caused the pattern to go out of line. It was lucky that I spotted it before I did too many rows.

Black Glove

After all the problems I had it was nice that the Gloves went according to plan and though the numbers aren’t showing up very well in the photograph the sizing is correct.

Beret Collection

So to wrap up this blog (yes the pun was intended) I thought I would show you my entire winter collection. Of course the Brown Beret decided to disappear but you get the general idea.

Therefore apart from a couple of tweaks (I am still looking for some dark green wool to extend the Green Scarf).that is the end of knitting Wool Berets for now. I do have some other colours in mind but I want to concentrate on different projects.

Besides people keep asking me about my long term project and I really need to keep working on that in addition to my Summer Projects.

Wrap Up Winter! It is now Spring 2018 Part 1

Wrap Up Winter! It is now Spring 2018 Part 1

We changed the clocks at the weekend and it is Good Friday tomorrow. Therefore I thought I would write a blog wrapping up a few winter projects.

Two Tone Scarf Extension

http://lady-jane-quirky.blogspot.co.uk/2018/02/autumn-cape-long-term-project-inside.html

In the link above I was discussing my attempt at making a Two Tone Set. As you may recall I ran out of wool knitting the Scarf. Unfortunately I couldn’t get the Kingfisher Blue as it was discontinued so here is the finished item extended with the Petrol Blue Wool.

Merino Wool

I realised whilst finishing the Blue Scarf that I have difficulty remembering how much wool to buy. One of the reasons is because I have never really sat down and worked it out. Yes I am using a pattern but I am not using the yarn stated plus I have also adjusted it.

Therefore I thought I would measure and note as I go. The yarn I am using is King Cole Merino Blend DK super-wash wool. It is Shade 46 Aran 50g and approximately 115 yards in length.

Aran Beret

I am using 4mm needles and when finished the Rib measures approximately 7 inches wide when flat.  The height from Rib to apex is 6 Inches. This is when following the pattern correctly and using my usual tension.

Aran Gloves

The Gloves are made with the correct cast on and needles. However I tend to adjust the pattern by eye towards the finger tips. I usually deduct approximately 2 rows stocking stitch per finger depending on my tension. The end result is 9 inches from Rib to end of Little Finger. The Cuff is approximately 2.5-3 Inches across.

Aran Scarf Width

It is always when it comes to the Scarf that I get really lost trying to work out how much yarn is required. This is due to the fact that although I use the correct size needles (4mm) I don’t cast on the same amount of stitches each time.

The cast on amount is always divisible by 4. In this case 44 stitches and it has in this case resulted in a 3 Inch Rib.

Aran Scarf Length

Once I change the number of stitches it will affect the width. The pattern states that I should cast on 60 stitches. I found that far too wide when knitted so I reduced it. The length when knitting up one ball works out at 18.5 Inches *

So by removing 16 stitches I automatically increase the length. This means I need to buy fewer balls of wool. Increasing the cast on results on requires more balls.

Aran Brooch

The Brooch was knitted using 4mm needles. It measures approximately 2 Inches in diameter. I made a bit of a mess when sewing this up and it didn’t sit right. Therefore I had to unpick the fastening stitches, readjust the position and resew.

Aran Brooch Finished

After resewing I found a nice sparkly gem for the centre and proceeded to add Black Beads around it. Then all it needed was the safety pin added.

Comparison Results In Part 2

*

REMEMBER THESE NUMBERS ONLY WORK WHEN USING THE SAME TYPE OF WOOL AND YARDAGE!