Infectious

[liadethornegge]

This afternoon I headed in to town to get some needed supplies, interfacing for skirt lining, button, zipper and also 300 g of yarn intended for a knitted bed-jacket.

Yep, that's right, it's spread as far as me. I don't have any knitting needles as yet, however, as the second-hand charity shop didn't have any of the size I needed, and it was just around closing-time when I got to that so there was no time to check any other stores. I got five sock needles instead (at 2 SKR a piece, why not?). I'll probably go back into town tomorrow to check the other second-hand shops. Knitting needles seem a silly item to not get second-hand. As long as there are some the right size.

Besides the needles being missing, there's the obvious hurdle of not knowing how to accomplish my goal. It has been at least ten years since I last did any knitting, so I'm not sure I can remember all I need to in order to pull this off. If anyone has any kind of pattern or general newbie advice for me that'd be awesome :)

I did some surfing, found this page for a bed jacket with flared sleeves which looks nice. Or alternately, you could call it a shrug. This one from knitty.com also looks very nice, though they lack the option of something to cover the upper chest area which, when I'm reading in bed, is likely to also get chilly. This pattern shows the kind of open style knitting I want to do, which I saw on Tuesday on Lady Sophia in the form of a shawl.

Of course, seeing those patterns I can't decipher them yet. I need to consult experts here.

Comments

[ciorstan.livejournal.com]

This is the stitch pattern from the Crystal Palace shrug, and it's a simple lace pattern. Basically, the pattern is worked on the odd-numbered rows, and you purl all even rows. The knit stitch on the edge of the even rows is to give you a clean edge on the garment.

Deciphered into words, here goes:


Row 1: K2*YO, k3, yo, k1; rep from * to last st end k1. 63 (69 sts)

Knit 2 stitches, *yarn over, knit three stitches, yarn over, knit one; repeat the sequence of stitches from the asterisk to the second to last stitch on the row, knit one. You should have 63 (69 for the large size) stitches on your needle.

Row 2: K1, purl to last st, k1. 63 (69 sts)

Knit one, purl to last stitch, knit one. You should still have 63(69) stitches on your needle. This is the foundation for your lace; if you don't remember to purl back on the even rows, your lace will look funneh.

Row 3: *K3, sl1, k2tog, psso; rep from * end k3. 43 (47 sts)

*Knit three, slip one, knit two together, passover; repeat stitch sequence from * to last three remaining stitches, which you knit off.

Row 4: K1, purl to last st, k1. 43 (47sts)

Same as row 2.

Rep the 4 rows of stitch pattern until piece measures 45 (47)”; end after working a row 4. Bind Off loosely. (You may want to use needle 2 sizes larger than needle size used for body).


Definitions:

Yarn over-- sometimes called make one. You loop the yarn over your right hand needle once. This is most commonly done after a decrease of some kind, because it forms a hole AND makes up one additional stitch. The big holes in the picture of the finished garment are all yarn-overs.

slip one transfer a stitch from the left needle to the right. Slipping by default is done purl-wise, that is, you stick your right needle tip into the slipped stitch from the lower back to the upper right, as if you were going to purl. If you do it knitwise, you twist the stitch-- which is sometimes desirable, but usually not. If the designer wants you to slip knitwise, they'll tell you to do that.

knit two together for the longest time, I got slip-slip-knit and knit two together confused. They are opposing decreases that slant in opposing directions. Knit two together means insert the tip of your needle into the farthest of the two stitches away from your right needle through both stitches and work them as one stitch as you knit it off.

psso passover. Usually this is a slipped stitch next to a decrease. You bring the slipped stitch back from the right needle and drop its loop over the top of your just-worked decrease. This turns three stitches into one and is a BIG decrease. Sometimes you'll see slip-k2tog-psso, sometimes it's slip-ssk-psso, depending on which way the designer wants the slant of the decrease to lie.

The only stitch you're missing from the lace arsenal is ssk, which is the opposite decrease from k2tog. You slip two stitches purlwise left to right, poke your left needle into both stitches and knit them together. This can also be done by sticking your right needle into the next two stitches on your left needle and rolling the right needle to the back of the work, then knitting both stitches off together.

Some people find it easier to work from a chart of symbols rather than a stitch sequence. This one's really simple, which is why it wasn't charted.

I love lace knitting; feel free to ask!

[liadethornegge.livejournal.com]

OK, I tried this a little bit on my own here and I was utterly confused. Then I did a bit more surfing and pondering, so let me check if I have it down right.

On Row 1, each of the Yarn Over results in ONE MORE stitch being added to my row, right? And in Row 3, each of the two-together + pass over results in TWO LESS stitches?

If that's right I might be on the way to understanding. But I still don't know how many stitches to cast on to start with, or where to start or... well.. Yanno, general confusion.

I like the designs I linked to above, but I'd like something to cover the front as well, which they do not offer and I can't modify a pattern in knitting to do that for me. So, question becomes: can I just knit a piece to act like a large collar and sew that on? How do I make a recipy for a collar then?

[ciorstan.livejournal.com]

On Row 1, each of the Yarn Over results in ONE MORE stitch being added to my row, right? And in Row 3, each of the two-together + pass over results in TWO LESS stitches?

Correct on both counts. The sl-k2tog-psso turns three stitches into one; the single decrease of ssk or k2tog turns two stitches into one.

Now you get to swatch. Use your sample piece to calculate how wide your needles and knitting tension generate stitches per centimeter. Then it's a question of math and multiplying it up from there.

Generally speaking, lace 'blooms' when you're finished blocking it. This means getting it wet, pinning it out carefully with non-rusting pins and letting it dry stretched out evenly. The holes become more prominent, the pattern becomes more airy and light and open. Lace on the needles looks like mush. It would be a good idea for you to knit a sample piece in your yarn and block it out to be able to project your math properly.

As far as a collar goes, you can make your bedjacket then pick up stitches along the neck edge and knit a collar piece directly onto your neckline. Again, it's all a question of math as to how your gauge/st-per-cm tells you to center how many stitches on the center of the neck.

I hope that makes sense...

And you're very welcome!

[liadethornegge.livejournal.com]

I hope that makes sense...

Shiny, yes it does. But I am seriously way too impatient to try a large scale sample. I'll just go ahead with the number of stitches the lacy pattern suggests. I'm assuming that with the blocking I can also control how much I want to pull it out, such that it won't get too big? Too small is, I think, not going to be an issue. BTW, I had no idea what blocking was, but had seen it mentioned, so thanks for that clarification also.

Aah, picking up stiches directly on the thingy - sweet. We'll see how it goes.

Me and winging it? Yeah, we're aqcuainted ;)

[liadethornegge.livejournal.com]

Also, thank you thank you thank you SO MUCH for all this info - it was precicely what I needed!

[myralea.livejournal.com]

*smiling*

of course one has to knit! knitting is happiness :)

feel free to call if you need any help to decipher patterns.

did you know that there is a café knitting meeting in uppsala too, canät remember when nor where they meet. but if you go there, there should be plenty people ready to help! (or you are welcome to sthlm on tuesdays)

concerning knitting needles, second hand one can definately be as good as new ones. although keep in mind there are good comfy knitting needles and there are bad uncomfy ones, and seriously, it affects the pleasure of knitting... so if you feel you don't like knitting with one pair, another pair could turn out much better! i prefer wooden needles, and in particular ebony. (yes, i have been called a knitting snob...). metal needles doesn't klick with me at all ;)

good luck!

[liadethornegge.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'd be too scared to walk into a café knit like that, cold. And, although I might consider coming to yours in Stockholm it is on Tuesdays which are Shire meeting day and I'm responsible for the kettle and tea, so I kind of have to attend those :(

If I get hopelessly stuck I'll keep you in mind!

I did a couple small samples of stitching with my two pairs of needles (one metal pair, size 4.5, and one laquered wood pair, size 7), and I'm glad I did because the first few rows were horribly uneven but I got better at tensioning as I went along. I might have to do a few more practice pieces. I undid both patches to save the yarn.