The Legwarmers saga

Two different people asked me for legwarmers for Christmas. EDIT: and there was a bonus pair for one of the recipients. 

One pair were in terracotta chunky wool. Single ply, so doable on the 22 peg circular knitting machine with care. As with my last few pairs, I used the train ticket trick to 'add' three pairs of extra stitches for calf shaping. Then decreased two stitches at the top before ribbing both ends on 6mm dpns, (Note to self: Row counts are in diary entry 2022-11-21.) I even took some process photos to share with the discussion group. Then the UK had a severe cold snap, so this pair were delivered early - and welcomed - before I could snaffle them to take a quick photo. Another time I might make them a little longer, but they were definitely good to go. 

I'd bought some gorgeous dk merino for the second pair, but failed to find a suitable pattern.* Ah well, I can work this out with a tape measure and a few calculations. Except: the ankle needs to be bigger than you'd think, to be put on over the heel; and the circumference needs less than you'd think, to stay up nicely. With negative ease, that means more length than you'd think - as you trade width for length when worn. By the time I'd knitted up two failed attempts (way too slouchy) , I'd run out of time before the last posting date, and substituted a different present. 

*Of course, at knit'n'natter a couple of weeks later, someone is wearing a k2p2 tube, no fancy shaping, which fit her beautifully. Far fewer stitches than even my second attempt.

Hey ho, can I use the circular knitting machine and make a pair by mid- January? Ran up a small sample tube with the merino DK, and unsurprisingly it was just spread too thin. . So not with this yarn on this gauge machine (it's good for aran, ok with a soft chunky or a fluffier dk)

What I could do is plan to visit the newly opened wool shop down the train line and get some aran. (Edit: Successful run on Christmas Eve, merino aran in a colour that will suit my friend) And in the meantime try out a flat-panel approach with some leftover thicker grey acrylic dk on the machine. 

First thought was to do the widest flat panel I can (19 pegs) and hand-knit extra stitches, starting with a to be at the ankle, dividing into panels and increasing from three stitches to nine at the calf. Notes in diary entry 2022-12-17. Tried a contrast yarn first for the smaller panel, as a learning exercise. This was a good balance between fast and shape-able. It looked fine on the table - the same join as a ten-stitch blanket was neat and decorative. Not a bad fit when on, either, though I hadn't done the top ribbing yet. Those colours and proportions do make me want to add an animal head (grins) 

stretches to

Replaced the contrast yarn with grey. Don't know if I distorted anything while unpicking. But, when worn, every imperfection in tension or break in the yarn showed. Glad I prototyped this It'd be a good technique for a sleeve gusset, say, but not in this situation. It's the right hand item in the picture, the left is the wider panel worked topdown. 

Next try 2022-12-21, still using the grey prototype yarn, was to move the shaping to the wider panel, start with 13 sts and increase below the calf. The seam now starts just above the rib, rather than working a tube first, and the narrower panel was worked on the machine and mattress stitched in. That's neater, though although I reviewed the video of the increase technique, I'm still not quite tidy enough to want to use it on good yarn. Needs more practice on something with less stretch. 

So the final prototype, and one I'm happy enough with to make a matching pair, uses the same stitch count as last time , but is worked top down and decreases in the lower part of the calf muscle. The shaping again is worked on the wider panel. Note that the top ribbing is worked after decreasing two. The first warmer stayed up through an hour's wear. 

Whilst I'll test the pair for a full day before breaking open the good Aran, and decide whether to decrease four before ribbing or just two., these look good enough, and I'm confident that I can deliver something nice and warm to my friend in the next couple of weeks. 

EDIT New Year's Day. The grey Acrylic pair, photo at the top of this post, were wear-tested by me soon after Christmas, delivered New Year's Eve, and wear-tested in the Pennine foothills today. The recipient grinned muddily when she got home and says they pass. 

The merino wool Aran pair for the January birthday were done without seams on the machine using the train ticket method. They just need ribbing by hand, and I'll cast off two stitches, making 26 on 5.5mm needles. 

Toddler wristwarmers

Another leftovers project. Green/olive stripe toddler wristwarmers, for donation. 

Basic design is a 6" square, seamed above thumb, a gap, then a seam from there to wrist. These will be a bit smaller, for preschoolers, and knitted in the round. 

Leftover yarn, so knit top down to use every inch. I wanted to try reverse stocking stitch edging, and I like it. However I failed at yarn chicken, so the lower edge is different - intended a 3-stitch purl I-cord, but not enough yarn. 

The key thing for fit was to keep the cast on and cast off loose enough.

The amount of yarn left means there's about the same depth above and below the thumb hole. The owner can choose which way up they like to wear them. 

The finished warmer will just about go on my hands (I'm a small adult), though it feels tight. So, narrow as it looks, it'll be fine say age 3-7.

Undyed wool earwarmers

After seeing DD admiring some 100% undyed wool earwarmers, and knowing there were about enough leftovers from the horseshoe scarf, I looked for a pattern for her.

I liked this one. 

Another new-to-me technique. The cross stitches are slipped for two rows before crossing on the front. And although the base is stocking stitch, it doesn't roll at all.

Not perfectly knitted. But I enjoyed doing it. And the uneven start will be hidden by her hair. 

Red and yellow barbers pole hat and mitts

As a change from stripes to use up leftovers, I'd wanted to try a barbers pole stripe. 

Specifically, to get the stripe running at an angle, rather than straight across. 

Together with the red main yarn, I wound up 'bobbins', one red and two yellow on the circular knitting machine (a 22 peg) 

A couple of unexpecteds:

The first attempt in three colours was pulled back to the ribbing because the pitch of the stripes looked off - neither tilted nor left alone. Four bobbins was better, and I expect six would be better again. 

I'd imagined that the pitch would look steeper on the narrower mitts, however it's not obviously so.

Although I'd checked tension (gauge) before doing the mitts, and reduced the stitches to get the width right, they seem awfully big for 3-6 months

I was pleased with the reduced jogging on the hat, by slipping a triplet of stitches when changing yarns. Not so easy to get into a rhythm on the narrow mitts.

Finchdale jumper, not a myth!

Lots of talk about this aran jumper (Finchdale is the manufacturer's name for the colour, a warm grey with creamy white highlights). No evidence that it exists - until now. Tada! 

Will you trust me that the sleeves are waiting quietly in a project bag, until I finish the bodice.

From a pattern generated to my measurements, tweaked to get the biggest girth at high hip, and with four short rows at yoke height to correspond with my woven pattern. There will be a 1" ribbed band to fill in the neckline. 

Hmmm. Although I'd reduced the planned 1" of 6 short rows after estimating the shoulder slope, it looks like I need the six after all. And while 60 sts on 6mm needles was good below the yoke, the top part is wider than I'd like. 4sts/6rows to an inch gives an idea how much. 

Options. 

1/Live with it - better than my last attempt.

2/Unpick down to start of the short rows. Take the chance to move the wedge closer to the neckline, and make it six deep. Then change back to 5.5mm needles to fit the outer shoulder area better.

3/Defer a decision till I've knitted the back as well - see how the shoulders hang when they have some support.

4/ Unpick back to the bust area and add more volume at the front. For this wearable trial, below the armscye, I went with the original pattern where front and back shaping is the same. Not unusual for hand knit or sewing patterns for knit fabrics, and I wanted to keep things simpler this time. 

Think I'll go with Option 3, doing a needle change above my shoulder blades . Fully expect to do Option 2 as well, given that garments  tend to hang more to the outside once the sleeves are joined on. Saving Option 4 for another time. 

Dark red chunky man's hat

I'd bought two balls of the Chunky dark red yarn for the Weasley cardi, but used almost one. Now DH, for a nice reason*, doesn't generally like me to knit for him. But I decided to do it anyway when I wanted a handbag sized project to come out with me for the day. This one is eight sections, top-down, 80 stitches, on size 6.0mm needles. 

*He worries about losing stuff that I've put a lot of hours into. 

And the stealth knitting? Since he's seen the yarn before, and has seen me doing all those newborn hats recently, I'd bet myself he wouldn't ask what it was. (He didn't) Particularly the first outing, when it wasn't much more volume than a baby item, I could sit next to him and it was concealed in plain sight. :) 

Not too much to say about a very plain hat. Other than I'd forgotten that 24", falls into that awkward gap. Just a bit too big for four 8" dpns. During the last few increases, just a bit too small for a 24" circular.

I've contrived this time, by adding a 6.5mm dpn to my set of four 6.0mm in that awkward section. Then switch to the short-cabled circular which is fine. It turned out to be a perfect project the next day, my eyes were really tired and the stand can literally be knit with eyes closed. 

After 9", changed to k1p1 rib  for 3", then Jeny's stretchy bind off (the one where you add a yo before each stitch then do a double decrease) Total 12", longer than my grey stripy hat which I usually wear brim folded up, but can fold down in the worst weather. I'm pleased with this, and can pull it out as a nice surprise for DH. 

Sent from my phone

Weasley knitting. Baby cardi, plus practice woodland cardi

A cardigan to grow into, of unconventional design, by a knitter with more good wishes than professional skills. More importantly, made to welcome a new person into a lovely family I know. Do you think Molly Weasley would approve?

For this family, it had to be a cardi, not a jumper (sweater). Something quirky but not showy. Mum would quite like the Hogwarts colours, but nothing too obviously branded. They will have loads of presents in the tiny sizes. So, as I often do, I've made this in a 12 month size. It should fit next autumn - or as a light jacket next summer if he grows as quickly as his birthweight suggests. 

Baby has arrived safely, so I'm happy to reveal what was mostly made in September. His dad would approve good software practices, delaying the final touches till the 'last responsible moment'. I've just sewed the buttons on the correct side for a boy (there are buttonholes in both integrated bands). And using the reserved yarn, I've just extended the cuffs - baby has long bones like dad, not short and sturdy like mum.

I failed to source Aran weight in the right colours, but found Chunky. (Local readers, the shop in the Wayfarers Arcade has a small stock of yarn, but they are really helpful!) Not that I've ever seen a chunky pattern in so small a size. Never mind, let's adapt.

Rather than taking the preemie pattern I used last year up three chest sizes as well as six needle sizes (gulp), I had someone in mind who would like a woodland coloured cardi made from the Oh Baby pattern. On 4.5mm needles, for 12 month size, I could knit an odd ball from stash to the pattern. Then rescale it to chunky and have something to check the Weasley cardi against.

The colours are even nicer in real life. The proportions are like the schematic. The disappointment that it came out a size smaller than planned. Since I usually knit more loosely than a pattern suggests , it was a surprise until I twigged that the yarn (Stylecraft Vision) was baby Dk, not dk, and is lovely and fine and soft. I know I should swatch, but it's so tempting to just go ahead if the item is small. (This 9 month size will be donated. Sorry, one year old S.) 

After swatching the Weasley cardi (hmmm) I used a 2:3 ratio to resize. And worked out the golden stripe placement, well, not quite on the fly, but to keep the colour changes as smooth as I could.

I haven't presented it to the parents yet. They're still at the frantic frequently feeding stage. But I hope they will smile when they open the package. And enjoy seeing Baby E wearing this when he's big enough. 

Sand sea and sky yarn. Cat's ears hat

There was one ball, can't remember where it came from, of an interesting yarn. The label said Pebble baby DK, I think by wool craft. One white strand plied with long variegated runs of light blue and a sandy brown. Lovely effects, nice in your hands, but not enough for a cardi, so let's make hats.

After a few stitches, I realised it's OK, rather dense, on the recommended 4.0mm needles, but would be too thick to work the ribbing on 3.5mm needles. I was keen to deliver the dozen newborn hats, and thought maybe I'd do a few on the Circular Knitting Machine - mine is an Addi pro 22 peg, knits as just less than 6.0mm needles. I bet the coverage would be fine (it was)

Waded unthinkingly in to crank out the 19 st by 40 rows panel for a cat's ears hat, and hated it. All the blue fell on one side when folded, all the sand and brown on the other. Where the stripes met at the side seams, I'll leave you to picture.

Next attempt hand-knit with 5.0mm needles, 63 sts topdown. It was started with the outside of the ball, blue and white, and I'd hoped to end with the dark band of sand/brown. And would have done, if I'd used fewer stitches. This came out 12 month size, and overshot the sandy runs, finished with white, and fussy mouse wasn't keen. Rather than unpick all of it, I took it back to just above the sand, added a run of browns from the middle of the ball, and finished with sand and earth. 

This I do like. Shame I don't have a recipient in mind, who would really enjoy this. But it will be donated to the baby equipment bank and keep someone warm.

The two newborn hats in yesterday's post were knitted (54 sts on 5.0mm) from the next runs, blues and whites. To arrange the colours, I started with blue, alternated the ball thread with the tails. One came out with bands of cloud, and wide pools of water reflecting the sky - much like our very shallow beach. The other a more hazy day, with more sand and sandhills visible. 

Leaving both ends of the ball in browns and sands. I bet they'd make lovely cat's ears hats, panel 40 rows, darkest brown at the top. Out with the machine again. 

First attempt I made work for myself by cranking white to brown to white, thinking I'd find a good fold line and unpick the bits I didn't need for the ribbing. It turned out fine, hand knitting the ribs by alternating the unpicked ends until one of them ran out. But I could have made my life easier. 

Second attempt I remembered that the outside of the machine gives a good approximation to the yarn length needed for a round or a 19st row. So I wound the yarn round, chose my colour change pattern, reserved some white for ribbing, cranked out just a few more rows than I expected. Just unpicked the odd row, much nicer. Spiral knit the ribbing with the reserved white and the ball thread. Yes, I'll do this again with the right yarn. 

And the final hat was done without handknitting. The two user groups I read for this machine often ask ¿can a newborn hat be made on a 22 peg machine? The short answer is the 22 pegs are not big enough for a tube hat, the simplest to crank. But they are big enough for a cat's ear. Some users don't hand-knit as well as crank (many do). But you can convert stocking stitch to rib with a crochet hook, using the drop and latch technique. The final hurdle to overcome is to get the cast off (bind off) row loose enough. This time I crocheted an extra chain between each pair of ribs, and the whole hat will stretch to fit the intended 13.5" circumference. 

There are just two small ends of blue left, about 5g. Maybe will eke out another colour when I do the next batch of newborn hats. 

2022 Autumn newborn hats

Most years, I make a handful of newborn hats, prompted by an amazing young woman who cares for a LOT of very new babies, generally weighing 5-10lb (something like 2.5kg to 4.5kg). The unit are not bothered too much about style, so long as they keep the babes warm, and so long as they will survive an industrial washing machine. As some units ask for no ties or buttons, I knit pull-on hats, and avoid yellow because that would make jaundice harder to spot.

In previous years, I've had problems with sizing, so this year's batch all started with the pattern (web) published by the Royal Hampshire NHS trust. Double knit yarn on straight 4.00mm needles, bottom up on 71 sts, starting with 3" of rib and ending with a ten section crown 

My own preference is to use dpns or magic loop, knit top down, but easy enough to adapt the pattern. The first one knit was 10 section on 70 sts, green, on the right of the photo. It felt rather stiff at the crown, and looked  pumpkin-like. The second one knit, in the same mid-green yarn, was 70 sts  with a 7 section crown, much smoother but more domed. I prefer it, but more counting for beginner knitters. Of course I then had to try 8 section (white, centre left) and 9 section (white, centre right). Either of these are quite like the published photo, a flattish top. And the bonus is a little extra width since 72 sts works better for these.

Had to try some double increase crowns, too. The green striped yarn on the left was 70 sts with five double increases per round. The bottom right 72 sts with four double increases - functional but there's a misplaced increase so it's not as attractive as the others. The top right was my personal favourite, a purl stitch halfway between the four double increases makes it more leaf-like* and much easier to count than its companion. *I happen to like natural motifs. This is simple enough to survive washing and isn't heavily gendered.

As well as playing variations on a theme with the crown, I did a variety of rib patterns. Bottom left k1p1, then k2p1 above it. Right hand side k2p2 in white, k3p1 in stripe remnant and white rib.  I'd expected k1p1 to be the softest and most suitable for little bruised bonces (and it was) What surprised me was that k3p1 felt softer than k2p2 - and no harder on the hands to work up. All cast off (bound off) using a bigger needle in the same stitch pattern.

Now for a game of yarn chicken. The hats above weighed about 15g, and I had less than that of the two ends of white. The stripy hats, warts and all photo, were eked out with short lengths rejected when I was stripe matching. The blue and grey were my wristwarmers in 2021, the green variegated leftover from matching arms on a tiny cardigan in 2022. 

The left one is OK-ish. However the stripes are too narrow for a good jogless join. The right one is better, a continuous spiral (thanks toTechknitter.com barber pole). Even the needle changeover point moves around the spiral.

You might also notice the crown sections are more defined on this pair of hats  - they were knitted bottom up which is better for yarn chicken. I was also trying out the Latvian cast-on because my tension is rubbish with the thumb-method, and the Channel Island is too stiff at the edge for tiny people. I'm happy with the Latvian, and intend to use it lots.

Right-ho. That's all my double knit yarn in pale or medium colours used up. A tiny ball of pink aran leftovers were put with two even tinier balls of white. Think this was 64 sts on 5mm needles. A little short of rounds, but will be fine for a baby at the top end of the newborn weight.

The other two were from a full 100g ball of an interesting yarn labelled as DK. It varies from blue to white to a sandy-brown. No way could I rib this thicker yarn on 3.5mm needles. So moved the stocking stitch to 5mm, 64 sts (left) and 54 sts. Took a lot of care arranging the colour changes, and was pleased how they ended up. 

More another time on what happened to the rest of the blue/white/sandy yarn. (I have photos already)

What exactly is a knitted horseshoe scarf?

Kind readers have put up with me talking about how brain fogged I've been while knitting the horseshoe scarf.  Well, at last, here we are!** 

** Apologies for the rumpled shirt photos. More likely to be worn with a plain tee or to fill in a neckline in cooler weather.

The back story is that I improvised one in a hurry on the Addi Express (19 widely spaced pegs) knitting machine some years ago. When it became too tatty, I scrambled up a replacement on the same machine. The key thing was a curved back neckline - straight scarves sneak into the curve above my prominent spine bone - together with some way of fastening it at the front. What I came up with was a cross between a round collar, a sailor collar, and a boy-scout neckerchief. You really can see a knitted 'woggle'.

Do you ever find that something rushed up in whatever leftovers come to hand actually gets loads of use? This did!

Well, the white version has been exactly the throw-on-and-adjust no-fuss scarf that I wanted. There were a few things to improve on. It wasn't quite deep enough at the back of the neck. You can tell, if you peer hard at the back of the white version, that there's a gap between the scarf and the neckline of the RTW jumper. Not so good in winter. Could a different edge treatment give the extra depth? Let's try a garter stitch edge instead of a narrow rib. I also felt the tails on the front were too narrow for the length. Well, a broader edge will help that too.

This April I tried to read the stitches in the white one, write up the pattern, and hand-knit one in green or cream. Given both muddlement and a bad yarn choice (the variegated yarn was too fussy and the colour runs were too long), there will be no pictures of the green attempt. Started again in May with some unlabelled real wool-on-a-cone found at our local charity shop, using size 6mm needles. Much better, but hadn't allowed extra stitches on the outer edge. So with the last of the unused yarn and a little unpicking to reuse some of the failed attempt, there was enough to start again.

Finally, I have a wearable cream horseshoe scarf.  As always, it could be even better. If I make this again, I'd shape every four rows rather than every two on the tails to make them pointy-er. A smaller woggle, currently 8sts x 24rows, would reduce bulk in the tails, too.

I'm not sure whether I prefer it with the woggle or with my mouse shawl-pin. Probably a different choice summer and winter. What do you think?