Feral Knitter

Lingonberry Sweater

It's been a while since I've shown you anything feral! Here's my new brainchild: I wanted a simple pullover sweater in brighter colors. I'm consumed with pink love these days, so I was focused on berry shades. I saw a picture taken in Sweden that had caught my eye and captured the spirit I was looking for, so I began swatching. Swatch #1, the true color speed swatch, hasn't been photographed yet (sorry!).

Warning: The colors in the following photos look a bit off on my computer. What seems to be yellow is actually a chartreuse green.

Swatch #2 is the second-generation speed swatch, in which I've tried out the symmetrical color use so characteristic of Fair Isle knitting:

Swatch #3 took the colors I liked from Swatch #2 and tried out some patterns found in Sheila MacGregor's marvelous book Traditional Scandinavian Knitting:

Although I loved the colors, I didn't want such a dark stripe, plus I decided that two of the panels looked a bit too much alike. Swatch #4 shows several different concepts, tossed together willy-nilly to see what might work. The right-hand side shows a lot of promise:

Swatch #5 started with a generally darker look (on the right) and a lighter look (on the left):

Right now, the left side of Swatch #5 is my favorite! It's a bit brighter and happier in person than the photo shows.

Because I'm using Swedish and Norwegian patterns and berry colors, I'm calling this lingonberry, after the berry used to make compote for Swedish pancakes. Seems fitting.

Meanwhile, I've settled on the patterns I want and have just about figured out how I want to approach the ribbings.

California!

I'm enjoying my time in California. We're having a lot of work done around the house and the young men in the house next door have started a garage band, plus there's the daycare next door to the garage band as well, so things have been a little noisy!

I had a chance to meet up with some friends in San Jose yesterday; Jaya and Joy are "internet friends," the kind of people I think of whenever someone challenges me about the time I spend on the blog. Time well spent because I have met such great people along the way! We went to the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles, which was hosting the Beyond Knitting: Uncharted Stitches exhibit. It was great to see some of these pieces in person (readers of Fiberarts magazine will be familiar with some of them)--Katharine Cobey's Portrait of Alzheimer's was especially moving.

As so often happens, though, it was something I hadn't even known about, an exhibit of appliqued and embroidered quilts, that really impressed me. Pun Intended: The Apliqued Wit of Dorothy Vance was marvelous! Here are some of the museum notes:

Pun Intended: The Appliquéd Wit of Dorothy Vance, features 14 humorous quilts juxtaposing folk art, politics and pop culture. Dorothy Vance is known for her unique, clever and humanly charming folk art quilts, and this exhibition showcases this original work and the vision of an imaginative and irrepressible artistic personality.

Throughout her life, Vance engaged in various sorts of arts and crafts including pottery, tile making, bread making, writing, and graphic design. In 1977, Vance began to stitch, and continued to create new works until her death in February 2007 at the age of 77. She combined her writing and sewing skills to embed clever irony and wit into such quilts as the award-winning Presidents; the limerick-filled quilt There Was An Old Man; and Odd Couples, a humorous pairing of icons from history and popular culture who share the same last name, such as Nat and Lana Turner, Karl and Harpo Marx, and James and Marilyn Monroe.

We spent ages in front of each piece, laughing and wondering at the mind that could come up with these pieces. I love that she didn't start stitching until she was 47 years old--as I get older, I can, at low moments, feel that it (whatever it is) has passed me by.

Not true, when we have such examples before us!

Oh, and for those of you who are worried: Gingko is shaking the fermenting lichens while I'm gone.

Resilience

Sometimes all you need is to know that you are not alone--and clearly my admission of multiple knitting failures either terminal or fixable struck a chord.

I've rallied, thank you very much.

The socks are a gift for a friend, so they had to be fixed. Here you see them getting a simple rib removal (we will call them the Eve Socks from now on). I'll find an appropriate spot in the yarn and knit upwards to add the necessary  length.

By the way, the yarn is OnLine Supersocke 100 in a Holiday colorway, a wool/nylon sock yarn. I have a red one in my stash.

The Kerry Red Shawl--now that is a sad story. I realized that the shawl begged for a fingering-weight wool, not the airy alpaca that I was using. Once I freed it from the needles, I knew I'd made the right decision! Here you see the shawl being frogged:

But I have found the perfect project for this yarn: the Firmaments Lace Shawl, by Bonnie Sennott. I had seen this adaptation of a Pi Shawl on Ravelry before the pattern was written up and placed it in my Favorites folder--so I was very pleased to see that the pattern was now available (and for $1.99!). I'm in Berkeley, away from my needle stash, so I can't get started right way--but at least I have a plan.

It's not all destruction and dreams around here, though: I've started some new socks!

Hope springs eternal....

Confession of a Fraudulent Knitter

It is time to face the truth--the harsh, uncompromising truth--no matter how it hurts.

I am clearly incapable of knitting my way out of a paper bag.

The first signs were there as early as last year, when I had some major problems with the Celtic Knot Cardigan. Body 8 inches too wide and miscalculated underarm stitches that created a wavy yoke. I rallied, though, and with consumate skill (if I do say so myself) I fixed the problems.

 

An even easier problem to fix was the fact that my 14 squares for the Lizard Ridge Afghan could not, by any calculations, be turned into a usable rectangle. Those of you as challenged in math as I might need a refresher: 14 squares can turn into an afghan that is 2 squares wide by 7 squares tall, or one that is 7 squares wide by 2 squares tall. There's really nothing else to do with them, trust me. The fix? I knit 2 more squares. Done and done. Still, my confidence was shaken.

Then the Habu jacket, shelved for lack of attention to gauge.

I had an excuse: the pattern was written in Japanese, a language absent from the curriculum in the department of Near Eastern languages that I graduated from. Also, the pattern was rather vague on the gauge issue: 4 stitches per inch "after steamed and blocked," with a footnote that read "Above gauge is not an 'absolute' gauge. Each person has a very different tight or loose way of knitting. The yarn is also a living creature. It will stretch or shrink depending on the season or where you live. Please do not be too concerned or worried getting the gauge perfectly. [emphasis mine] There should always be an extra amount of yarn to ifnish the project."

So, I ran out of yarn with half a sleeve and the collar to go. Lacking the heart to frog the project, it has been shoved into a bag and set aside in the long-term-temporary bad knitting time-out closet.

Next: the Nantucket Jacket. Again, an insouciant approach to measurement and a reluctance to confirm that the resulting garment pieces matched the schematic in any way resulted in bad news halfway along. Yeah, big surprise.

I found the energy to frog half the back, but ran out of steam: the pieces were jammed into a bag and set aside.

Then, my Blue Jeans Sweater--inexplicably, I made the yoke too shallow. I had enough energy to create a rescue plan, but the sweater is languishing photogenically in a basket that is slowly being shoved aside. I'm used to having to re-think my own designs, so this one did not touch my self-confidence; rather, it made me feel tired and world-weary.

Last night: The Kerry Blue Shawl (from Traditional Knitted Lace Shawls by Martha Waterman) in lovely Gossamer, a 100% alpaca yarn handdyed by Cheryl Oberle. I was on row 79 when disaster struck: a stitch fell off the needle as I was knitting and decided to make a break for it. Although it only made 5 rows before being captured, it managed to involve several yarn overs and ssks. Every attempt to repair the drop has failed, and I lacked the heart to attempt to pick up below the problem and rip back. (Do not, I repeat, do not mention the word "lifeline" to me--I'm just warning you.)

I guess I should confess that this is the second time this has happened on this project. (Let me remind you about the injunction against the word "lifeline.")

And nagging at the back of my mind throughout it all is the sense that the shawl will be too small at the gauge I'm getting (the pattern is charmingly vague about yarn grist or knitted gauge, and by charmingly I mean, WTF, Interweave Press dudes?).

The coup de grace, however, occurred later last night. I pulled out my failsafe project, something I have knit at least 50 times--an I could do it in my sleep kind of project: a pair of socks, plain, utilitarian, not fancy socks. I finished the second sock, kitchenered the toes, wove in the ends and discovered this:

Do you see it? No, not the mis-matched stripe placement (come one, you know I just LOVE that sort of thing!). Here, look closer:

Now, you guys know that I am willing to let many things pass. I am not an obsessive perfectionist (do I really need to say this?). But really. A 1" difference in length???? This is the final straw.

Uncle.

Life Goes On

Yes, Pets, it's been a while. Life has been go go go since I returned from Knitting Camp, and, well, there it is. On Friday, for example, I was on the phone when I heard the clicks alerting me that another call was coming in. Just then, my cell phone rang. We'll just leave it that I'm a little scattered right now--I vaguely remember that I've begun emails to people who've written, but never finished them: Mea culpa if you haven't heard back from me.

I'll touch on the things going on:

1. Gingko started a new job this week at Samurai Noodle (I seem to be unable to keep from forming karate hands every time I say this--moms can be SO irritating), a tiny fresh ramen restaurant in Seattle's International District.

2. Ryan's squares are gathering but not yet seamed together. She admitted that she enjoys the anticipation, so--lucky girl--we are going to extend that period of anticipation! (photo courtesy of LindaK)

3. I'm working on a new sweater design: Lingonberry. I've finished the charting and I think I've finished the color decisions. Oops, no photos yet.

4. I've started a shawl--the Kerry Blue Shawl from Traditional Knitted Lace Shawls by Martha Waterman (and if you are tempted to knit this one, be sure to get the extensive errata from the Interweave Press site). I'm using this wonderful 100% alpaca laceweight yarn from Cheryl Oberle, handdyed lovely shades of cool red. Oh, I forgot to photgraph this as well.

5. I've been washing the Shetland fleece from Black Sheep Gathering--my Fair Isle from Scratch project is proceding slowly.

6. The lichen jars are proving a disappointment. This is not color-by-numbers dyeing, that's for sure!

7. Rebecca and Peggy gave me these books on natural dyeing:

Wonderful!  (Note fleece drying in the corners.) I'm getting pulled more and more deeply into the amazing and complex world of natural dyes--this is obviously one of those "lifetime learning" subjects.

8. I visited my sister Tori, who lives in central Washington. Here is the morning view of sage and apple orchards from her back porch:

9. I've been enjoying a book I found recently: Eye for Colour by Bernat Klein (1965), a fabric designer who was known for his groundbreaking use of color and texture. I love . Klein talks about working from inspiration rather than from color wheels and theories and percentages. He examines the use of color by other artists, and pairs his paintings with the fabrics that developed from them. He was very focussed on textile colors as they affect the wearer, and speaks a great deal about freeing oneself from symbolic color use and fashion colors to find what works for the individual. Definitely work seeking out at your local library.

10. I'm driving down to California today for a lovely, long visit. Shadow is quite anxious--he has spied the suitcase and does not want to be left behind. Maybe, just maybe, I'll find more lichens along the way.... Oops, it's 8:30 and I've got to get going!

11. And yesterday I celebrated my birthday! It would appear that Saturn has left my sign, which in theory portends a much less stressful year ahead. I'm ready!

What I Did Last Summer

My trip to Meg Swansen's Knitting Camp did not begin auspiciously. However, I did prove that it is possible to wake up in north Seattle at 5:33 AM and be seated on a flight pulling out of the gate at Sea-Tac aiport at 6:50 AM. I will leave my language upon waking up to realize that I had not set the alarm correctly to your imagination. Honestly, I did not think that this was possible, given the physical realities of morning bodily functions, caffeine requirements, and geographic distance. Plus, don't forget parking.

I flew into Kansas City to visit with my friend Marilyn--she has an extensive collection of spinning wheels, looms, and books, so I was in seventh heaven. We drove up to Iowa City to spend the night at Greg's--our route included a scenic side trip on highway 2 to Fort Madison, IA, to eat at the Ivy Bake Shoppe. Wonderful. The millennium toffee bars in particular.

The route from Iowa City to Marshfield, Wisconsin, seemed to involve a trip to Illinois--we stopped at The Fold, a marvelous fiber destination. Their website doesn't begin to cover the extent of stock. I found an old copy of Color Trends by Michelle Wipplinger, a used copy of Eye for Colour by Bernat Klein, and Koekboya by Harald Bohmer on natural dyeing in Turkey and beyond (a FABULOUS book! and offered at a very good price).  

Knitting Camp was great this year. Entering the room feels like going home--I range around the tables, picking up the original garments knitted by Elizabeth Zimmermann or Meg many years ago. There's always something new to see.

Greg and I have a rigid set of traditions around camp. Thursday night: introductory buffet at the hotel: Friday breakfast at the Kitchen Table.

Friday dinner at Sceeter & Otis' in nearby Hewitt. Wisconsin Friday night fish fry, of course--the waitress always recognizes us. (Greg's partner says it's because we are freaks....). Please note that Gayle (left below) and Mabel are not freaks.

Saturday repeat breakfast, dinner at Culver's. Sunday breakfast at the Marshfield Family Restaurant (Kitchen Table is closed); pizza night dinner at camp. What can I say? Elizabeth Zimmermann herself said that you add to Christmas traditions at your peril; so it is with knitting camp. Any variation leaves us shaky.

So, camp itself. There's an incredible amount of talent in the room. I learned some cast-on variations that I, let's be honest, will forget within one week. I saw some wonderful garments in the show and tell. I learned a new way to close the little gap at the top of the heel gusset in a sock. Knitted shibori taught by Linda Lutz. Wild fisherman rib and mosaic variations from Morgan. A sweet little bird pattern from Cheryl Oberle. A knock-out double-knit coat by M'lou Baber (her book will be out in December!). That's M'lou on the left.

I finished the Leo Vest:

Meg showed the sweaters that will be in the next Wool Gathering:

I took lots and lots of intensely unflattering photos during camp. Be grateful that I didn't post them. These will remain with me unless I get pissed off, so if you were there you'd better be nice to me. The only reasonably good photo was of Poppy, who is irritatingly photogenic.

Greg mentioned to the group that the best thing about camp was that he could spit-splice publicly without anyone commenting. Cheryl Oberle offered a hint that was worth the cost of camp: Just pretend that you are stiffling a yawn.

Books going going gone: Sweaters from Camp (Fair Isle knitting--there are plans afoot to re-issue the technical introduction, but don't hold your breath), Poems of Color (Bohus knitting), Vatid Troid, Vamsad: Knitted Jackets from West Estonian Islands (Greg and I call this the Vapid Troll book), Foroysk Bindingarminster (Faroese color patterns).

Book good/bad news: Bridget Rorem's eagerly awaited book on lace has been tabled, but the patterns will be offered as single booklets. Soon!

Camp dates for 2009 have been posted: You know you want to be there!

P.S. I had many opportunities to see the devastation the Midwestern floods last month left behind. Cedar Rapids looked like a war zone, the University of Iowa art department had moved to an old hardware store, and many of the fields we passed were still under water.

Shhhhh.....

I'm at Meg Swansen's Knitting Camp and I don't have any room left in my brain.

Ask Ms Feral

What is a speed swatch?

Speed swatching is a technique I've developed to help me evaluate color choices quickly. Well, relatively quickly. Speedy in comparison to a bad blind date, that kind of quickly. Speedy in comparison to trying to figure out which colors to put in a motif swatch and then swatching and then changing an element or two and then swatching, ad nauseam. By grabbing all yarns in the color families I'm interested in and doing a simple swatch in diagonal stripes, I can see what is out of place, what is out of value order, and what might be needed. By the time I've determined the motifs I want to use, I am more aware of how the colors work together and have a better chance of having the subsequent swatches work out. In my workshops we use this technique to play with colors and narrow down our designs.

What is the best buttonhole for corrugated rib?

When I was asked this question, I had to admit that I had never done a buttonhole in corrugated rib. But being the Fair Isle obsessive that I am, I decided to test a few. My absolute favorite so far is called "Medrith Glover's Buttonhole for Corrugated Rib" and the instructions can be found in Sweaters from Camp, an invaluable collection of stranded garments plus complete techniques and design introduction edited by Meg Swansen, Amy Detjen, and Joyce Williams.

I don't have a macro setting for my camera, so I can't show this to you very well. The lower buttonhole is "Medrith Glover's Buttonhole for Corrugated Rib." This picture demonstrates another important swatch concept: you can swatch for color AND technique. This is a speed swatch done as corrugated rib with buttonholes thrown in here and there.

That's all we have room for today. Please let Ms. Feral know if you have any other questions pertaining to Fair Isle knitting or how the world could be run better.

Surrounded by Color

My Design Your Own Fair Isle 3-day workshop was held last weekend at the lodge-like home of Suzanne Pedersen, organizer of the Madrona Fiber Arts Retreat. It is an honor when people take time out of their lives and money out of their budgets to attend one of my classes, so I try really hard to make it worth their while. Designing a complex colorwork pattern involves so many different elements--and, let's face it, design dead ends that can be really discouraging. The eleven women in the workshop, however, did not give up, even though the heat on day 3 nearly hit record levels. I had a marvelous time, and I hope they did too!

Bird's eye view of the workshop area

 

A parade of value swatches

A parade of speed swatches

 

A parade of motif swatches

I swear I took photos of every swatch, but all I can seem to find on the camera card are stray pictures of blurry feet--my camera did take off on its own at times, snapping pictures when my finger was nowhere near the button. I think it also did not take photos at times that I actually pressed the button. Bummer, because every swatch at this workshop had enormous potential. At any rate, I apologize to Ann, Stephanie, Terri, Wendi, and Lizbeth for the lack of photos--their non-appearance here is no reflection on their loveliness! If anyone took some pictures, please send them my way! (Oh, I see that Carrie blogged extensively about the weekend here--and excellent use of black-and-white photography to see value differences.)

In the days following a class, I write up notes on what went well, what needs to be revamped, and what new discoveries we made. I learned a lot! We'll be having another Fair Isle class reunion at the Madrona Fiber Arts Retreat in Tacoma, Washington, next February--I look forward to seeing what progress has been made on these embryonic sweaters. Thank you for being such a great group! 

Dull Report: Black Sheep Gathering

Standard sheep photo to prove I was there.

Loved the Black Sheep Gathering, of course, even though I do not feel particularly inspired to write about it. The two classes I took were stellar--I'd show you a photo of the incredibly fine cashmere laceweight yarn I spun, but Gingko has noted that it is "not very impressive." How she can say this of a beautiful 12" piece of yarn I cannot figure....

I was sorely tempted to come home with a few Babydoll Southdown sheep, the cutest things I've ever seen (even cuter than the pygora goats, if you can believe that). The ones I watched were extremely docile--they are the size of medium dogs, sturdy, with teddy bear faces that are smiling all the time. Instead I came home with a white Shetland fleece, half a moorit Shetland fleece, and half a lovely black Corriedale fleece. At least I got the smell!

The market was overwhelming. I did purchase a pair of combs from Carolina Homespun (a planned indulgence), black and dark moorit Shetland rovings to add to the color range, and two painted rovings from Chameleon Colorworks. Oh, and seeds for Japanese indigo and dyer's weld!

Gingko took good care of the lichens while I was away, although listening to me explaining how to babysit them caused Ryan to laugh a lot.

Ryan's Afghan

Many people have written to me asking if they can still participate, so I've extended the deadline to July 10th.

And ANNE--my emails to you keep bouncing back with the message that your inbox is full! And your blog has restricted commenting....

Seeing Red

The lichens continue to ferment on the kitchen counter in their half-gallon canning jars. Each time I wander into the room or wait for the coffee to brew or the toast to brown, I lift off the lids for a little bit, close the jars again, and give them a good mariachi/martini shake. There are six jars: three Evernia prunastri, one Usnea hirta, and two Parmelia sulcata. The E. prunastri that I started on June 6th is already showing lots of red; the others, some started as recently as three days ago, are dark brown-to-reddish shades.

My windfall (literally) lichen haul has not been used up yet--I might have to go buy some more jars....

Fair Isle Design Workshop

There are two openings in the 3-day workshop I'm teaching next weekend, being held in Preston, Washington (near Seattle). Sheila posted a some picture of the venue (here). If you have found yourself free of obligations June 27th-29th, come join us.

Ryan's Afghan

It is a joy to check the mailbox every day as the squares arrive! They are beautiful. I didn't manage to include all of them in this shot--trust me, this will be lovely.

Black Sheep Gathering

I'm off to the Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene, Oregon! My sister Tori and Ryan are joining me for the weekend there--by carpooling and sharing a room and buying our food at the nearby grocery store, I figure that I will have saved enough money--at least $3000, right?--to buy some fleeces for the Fair Isle from Scratch project! I'm also hoping to find some Cormo and Finn and CVM and and and.....

Road knitting--handspun, hand-dyed lace yarn

I'm signed up for two classes: Popular Wheel Mechanics (I am so hoping that this time the discussions of ratios will stick to at least one of my brain cells) and To Spin a Fine Thread. Judith MacKenzie McCuin is teaching both of these, so I expect to learn a lot.