Abundance – well under way

I’ve finished the back of my Abundance bamboo lace pullover, pictured here.  The front is also nearly finished.

I’ve bravely/foolishly carried on without life lines.
a. I’m lazy
b. I worry that evidence of the lifeline can be seen after it’s been removed.

However, I would advise to do as I say, not as I do. I can’t guarantee a problem free run without a lifeline. I’m just taking a risk. I’ll probably use lifelines for the sleeves, as I’m using the top lace pattern for the whole length of the sleeves, and that’s the stitch pattern which caused me to swear whilst knitting the back. That was just a short stint for the back and front, but the sleeves are a whole different story. That stitch pattern is actually very easy, but accidentally dropping a stitch or two off the needles can change your demeanour very quickly.

Edendale Bag (previously known as Trellis Bag) pattern now available

My Edendale Bag pattern is finished and here it is at last.

It’s a textured bag knitted as a simple rectangle with no shaping. There are only side seams and handle casings to sew. The bag is knitted on smaller needles to create a firmer fabric. The stitch pattern only requires some very basic use of a cable needle. It’s a great showcase for the yarn, Sirdar Escape, and would look good with any self striping yarn.



Edendale Bag

Knitting Pattern
Yarn suggested : Sirdar Escape or any other 8 ply/DK ply yarn
Gauge : 31 stitches = 4 inches in Trellis Cross Stitch
Needle Size : 3.75mm and one cable needle
Meterage : 660 mtrs / 720 yards

This pattern is available to buy from Ravelry for $US 4.00

Trellis Bag constructed

The Trellis Bag is complete. My theories on it’s construction were all proved as it went along. I’ve taken photos of varying quality during the various construction stages and a couple of completion photos. When there’s more light and more time I’ll take some, hopefully better, photos. Sewing in the lining, sewing the pockets for the rods of the handles and putting it onto the handles all happened at Edendale Farm in Eltham during a Home Education meet up. So I’ve decided to officially name it the Edendale Bag. A quick search of Ravelry tells me that no-one has used this name so far. I have to try and get pattern writing for this piece, in amongst too many commitments for the preservation of sanity. Here is a photo of the bag during construction.

The summer pullover (working title, “Shells’n’Bells”) is progressing well. A couple of days ago I rediscovered the advisability of a life line. Don’t ask me how. This slippy bamboo yarn seems to make it more necessary than usual. A dropped stitch gets away Pretty Damn Quick. I do find life lines a bit awkward, and would rather not use them, but I must reluctantly admit, they are worth doing. I use sewing thread for my life line, as I have found thicker thread/yarn leaving a slight mark where it has displaced the knitting. So, anyway, I would say I have half of the first piece done.

A new project

Such is our family schedule, like most others, that it hasn’t been possible to even make a date to go shopping for some lining fabric for the trellis bag. So I’ll move on to another project that’s been on the back burner. Way back in June, I knitted these tension squares. The yarn is Sirdar Juicy DK, 80% Bamboo and 20% Cotton. It’s beautiful and soft and has a lovely drape to it.

My idea is to make a summer pullover in two different lace patterns. One will be for the sleeves and top half of the body, the other for the lower half of the body. The “squares” were laundered, dried and then hung overnight to determine any drop. I didn’t weight the squares as they hung, as the garment is intended to be close fitting, and therefore will be supported more by the wearers body than the rest of the fabric.

The above was written 12 days ago. In the intervening time I’ve had a crisis of confidence about my tension squares. After hanging, they dropped a little, as expected. However, after being put away for a couple of months, they seem to have retracted to their original size. Aaaaargh! What does it all mean? Does this mean that all my calculations based on the hung squares will be wrong? After much worrying, I decided to hang them again, out of curiosity to see what would happen. They dropped again, but not as much as the first time. I’m wondering if I was hallucinating when I took the first batch of measurements. After seeking advice from fellow fledgling designers on Ravelry, I’ve decided to go for a “split the difference” approach, somewhere between the two measurements, which isn’t huge anyway.

In the mean time, I’ve finished all my calculations, written up the pattern, bought yarn and actually begun knitting. It’s my first attempt at designing something with sleeves. To me, working out body and neckline measurements seems pretty much common sense, but armholes and sleeve caps are what have mystified me. In the absence of a convenient class to teach me these things, I have resorted to scouring knitting design books. Some of the instructions for working out shapings have seemed a little on the vague side to me. My most recent book purchase, though, has shed a lot more light on the subject. “Knitwear Design Workshop” by Shirley Paden has clear specifics which I’ve been able to comprehend. It remains to be seen whether I can convert this into a successfully designed garment. I remain hopeful.

Also, since I began writing this post, I have managed to drag DD1 to Spotlight to choose some lining material for her bag. In the next week, I plan to make up the bag and lining and get the pattern close to ready for publication. Exciting!

Birthday Party Preparations

We’re preparing for a 13th birthday party tomorrow. Cheesecake has been chosen and made as the birthday cake. Junk food has been bought. (And fruit for a fruit salad.)

We have a simple, but great book out from the library, “Fabulous Fashion Crafts” by Tracy Nelson Maurer. There’s a lovely belt in there, to be made from ribbons and beads. This will be a party activity, and the girls will have something to take home with them. I’ve cut all the ribbons to the right length, and here they are, all laid out. I hope they won’t all want to use the same colours. I’m sure we’ll come to some sort of an agreement.

I'm glad I did a trial threading of ribbon through beads, as the holes in the beads weren't quite big enough. Mr Unyewshual came to the rescue with a drill. Problem solved!

Trellis Bag progressing

I’ve been continuing on for a couple of weeks now, and am making slow, but consistent progress. The simple knit and purl rows are so quick and easy, it’s hard to buckle down for the more complex row, which appears every fourth row. But the stitch pattern looks so lovely, especially in this gorgeous colour combination.

School holidays are still happening, so I’m having trouble remembering what day it is at the moment. We’re short one car just now, which is slightly annoying, as these things always happen at the most inconvenient moment. It is sort of nice to be stuck at home sometimes, though.

Grey Day

It’s been the wettest start to winter for Melbourne in 9 years. Hopefully this means we're getting back to normal winters, instead of the terribly dry ones we've had for so long. The rain held off for our train trip into the city centre today, but had well and truly arrived by the time we came back.

Waiting for the train.

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I took DD2 into town to meet up with some friends to go to a birthday party. Then DD1 and I browsed up, down, round and round, all through Myer, to hopefully use some gift cards she’s received. Too much choice, I’m afraid. At least we know now what a huge range of stuff is available there. We were amazed by the cosmetics counters stretching as far as the eye can see.
I'd forgotten what it was like.

As often happens, we saw a couple of people we know. When the city is so crowded, it’s astounding that you can randomly bump into people you know.

The Trellis Bag continues, but a longer piece of the same thing is not interesting enough to include here.
I’m pleased to report that my sore arm is no longer sore. Phew.