December Stripes - Time to Start Christmas Projects

This summer, we've experienced an exceptionally hot summer.   Victoria (the city in which I live) is normally fairly mild in the summer and rarely sees temperatures in the high 20s low 30s. But this summer, the sun has been relentless. This heat has made it difficult for me to plan out Christmas knitting projects but now that it is August, it is time.

Even more motivation, the Michaels flyer this week is offering a 30% coupon on an entire purchase for all regular priced items. I've been waiting for this coupon and it is finally here. 

One of the projects on my long list is Elinor Brown's December Stripes hat (published in Exercise Before Knitting).  I made one for my nephew James (pictured above) two years ago and it was his favourite.  He has long outgrown it, but I'm planning to make James and his younger brother, matching hats this year.

The pattern is a phenomenal stash buster and I used left-over bits and pieces of worsted weight yarn.  Knit in the round, what makes this pattern particularly special is the braided edge. It is a sophisticated change from a garter border or a rolled stockinette border.

Although it's hard to think about cozy hats and scarves this time of year as we are all donning tank tops and shorts, these sweet hats will definitely be a welcome staple once the weather changes.

Now off to make my Christmas projects list and make a trip to Michaels!

What You Need to Know Before Buying a Knitting Machine

As someone who had never machine knit before, I discovered many key things along the way during my search for the right machine. I relied heavily on the internet and speaking with machine knitters. Here is a list that will hopefully help you if you are considering purchasing a knitting machine and have never used one before.

The Machines Themselves: 

1. Unlike hand knitting, where you can easily change the size of the needle to accommodate different thicknesses of yarn, a knitting machine has a set gauge. What this means is that a machine that uses fine yarn cannot use chunky yarns. If you want to machine knit with both types of yarn you will need to purchase two different machines. This explains why many avid machine knitters own multiple machines. Decide what you will most often make on your knitting machine. I went with a chunky gauge machine which can handle sport weight to a light bulky weight yarn. I most often work with worsted weight yarn as it is the most economical and readily available in the city that I live. 
2. Aside from Bond (which produces the Ultimate Sweater Machine), the only company that is producing knitting machines is Studio and they carry the Silver Reed line. They offer a wide range of machines for both beginners and advanced knitters. My research on the Silver Reed LK 150 reveals that it is highly desirable for beginners and they are in demand if you later decide to sell it. 
3. If you can afford to pay more, do not buy the Ultimate Sweater Machine. For every positive review there appears to be five (extremely) negative reviews. It also has a narrow needle bed so if you want to make blankets, you need to buy an extension package which just adds to the cost. 
4. The Silver Reed LK 150 is lightweight and portable. It is made of a durable plastic and can handle sport weight and worsted yarn. Machine knitters seem to love it and for the price difference, it is far superior to the Ultimate Sweater Machine. It is an ideal device for hobby knitters who enjoy hand manipulation of stitches to create patterns. 
5. Why I didn’t purchase the LK 150: I ended up purchasing the Brother KH 260 because I would eventually like to create knitwear and accessories for sale. The Brother KH 260 is made of metal instead of plastic and is more durable in the long run. It also has a punch card system which will allow me to do automatic patterning (textures and two-coloured fair isle) without having to do the manual manipulation. This feature will certainly speed up the production process which means I can make more in less time. 
6. Parts are available for used machines. While Brother is not manufacturing spare parts, there are warehouses that sell spare parts. Unfortunately, once they run out there will be no more. Knitting machines come with several parts and accessories. 
7. Although they are not complicated to use, unless you know what to look for, it is best not to buy a used machine from a garage or estate sale unless you are allowed to look at the manual and can check to see if all the parts and accessories are included. If the machine is missing a part, you will not be able to use it. Instead, you will end up having to scour the internet for used replacement parts. 

Will You Enjoy Machine Knitting? 
The best way to find this out is to try it. Unfortunately, for most people, it’s hard to find someone who owns a machine. Here is a list of things to consider:

1. Do you have a strong background in hand knitting? The learning curve for machine knitting will be much easier for those who are intermediate to advanced hand knitters. Strong knitters already know how to read patterns, understand the importance of gauge, understand terminology, and can envision what each panel should look like. They also understand the mechanics behind special stitches like increasing and decreasing. If you have a strong background in knitting, you can focus more on learning the mechanics of the machine. 
2. Where will you be machine knitting? When I hand knit, it’s almost always on a comfy couch in front of the tv with my husband and kids. I hand knit to relax in a quiet atmosphere. Machine knitting is louder than I expected. Every time you pass the carriage over the needle bed, the machine makes a metallic swishing sound. It’s not ear piercing but would certainly be annoying for others in the room. So, I have set up my machine in my office. I set my iPad on the table and watch Netflix while I machine knit. The iPad is also handy when I need to troubleshoot - thank you YouTube! A knitting machine must be clamped on a sturdy table which means that you need to sit upright on a secure chair (I use an office chair that has wheels that glides well on my hardwood floor). If you spend a good portion of your day sitting at a desk for work, consider whether or not you want to machine knit while sitting at a table. I am on my feet all day, so I don’t mind sitting for an hour or two in the evening. 
3. Are you good at troubleshooting when your sewing machine or serger jams up? Your knitting machine will jam. It’s frustrating but having dealt with my sewing machine and serger for years, it’s second nature to me. Patience and creative problem solving are assets. 
4. Is there a knitting machine club or guild in your city? Connect with people who have expertise. They will know the ins and outs and can offer both resources and advice. Knitting club meetings often offer demonstrations and potentially an opportunity for you to try a machine yourself. 
5. Are you comfortable with math conversions for knitting patterns? This is another asset. Contemporary machine knitting patterns are limited but if you are comfortable with math conversions, most seamed pattern can be converted to the gauge of your machine. I find myself converting patterns so that I can use worsted weight yarn. So far, the outcome has been very positive. 
6.  Do you enjoy seaming knitting pieces? In a previous post, I wrote about how I hate seaming and that I exclusively hand knit in the round. With a flatbed knitting machine, you are forced to knit pieces and seam them later. Fortunately, I found Susan Bates Knit Klips. They have certainly eased my frustration with seaming. 
7. Don't Be Afraid to Ask Questions - I was fortunate enough to connect with my husband's aunt Marg, who is an avid machine knitter.  She lives across the country so I wasn't able to try any of her machines but we e-mailed back and forth several times.  I also connected with members of Victoria's knitting machine club and bought my machine from the vice president. Feel free to ask me any questions you might have!  I'd be happy to help!  

What Your Knitting Machine Can’t Do: 
While the knitting machine can is faster in some regards, it has its limitations.

1. Without special attachments or hand manipulation, you cannot do garter or rib stitches. For me, I’ve gotten around that by using a provisional cast on and then hand knitting in a garter or rib edge after I’ve finished working my pieces. 
2. Your knitting machine will not automatically make cables or lace. You will need to move stitches around by hand. 

Useful Articles 

• “What you should know before buying a knitting Machine” - Sonja Kathleen 
• “Demystifying Knitting Machines” - posted on Knitter's Review 
• “Selecting Your Knitting Machine” - Angelika of Angelika’s Yarn Store 
• “What Every Hand Knitter Needs to Know Before Buying a Knitting Machine” - Angelika of Angelika’s Yarn Store

My New Brother

No, my 64 year-old mother did not adopt a child late in life. Can you imagine? So, who’s my new brother. Actually, the question should be, what’s my new Brother? I bit the bullet and invested in a knitting machine - a Brother KH260. Why a knitting machine, you ask?

In the middle of winter, while working on relentless rows of stockinette, trying to complete a sweater for myself (which is still incomplete, might I add), I thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be great if there was a machine that could do this?” As a mother of two boys (ages 2 and 5), I find myself pressed for time. Gone are the days of spending an entire weekend leisurely finishing a project. I’m lucky if my kids don’t unravel skeins of yarn and pull out knitting needles of active projects. A machine would certainly speed up production, wouldn’t it?

This led to hours of internet reading and watching YouTube videos about knitting machines.  My internet search was both fruitful and overwhelming.  The videos sparked my desire for a machine. After hours of researching, I finally realized that I needed to ask people who actually machine knit. Huh! What a concept!  After all, I had never seen an actual knitting machine live in action before.

Angelika of Angelika’s Yarn Store suggested locating a local dealer who offers knitting lessons and contacting a local machine knitting club. A quick google search led me to the president of our local machine knitting club: the Knit Nutters. I also contacted my husband’s Aunt Marg, who I learned is an avid machine knitter.  hanks to Facebook, we messaged back and forth and she was a goldmine of useful information. Although she has five different machines, she highly recommended the Silver Reed LK 150 - her first and favourite machine.  It turns out that Silver Reed is the only company that is actively making knitting machines. Although very popular at one time, all other companies have stopped producing knitting machines.   

So off I set to find myself an LK 150. This proved to be tricky as my options were limited. I could order one online from the US for $400. This was unappealing for a number of reasons:

• it would be difficult to get any live support
• our exchange rate is disastrously low at the moment
• exchanging or returning it would be problematic

Just when I was about to give up, I got a phone call from Elaine Dendy, the vice president of the Knit Nutters Club and she had a used LK 150 for sale. What luck!  During our phone call, Elaine mentioned that she wanted to show me the Brother KH260 as well. She said that it was more expensive but it had more capabilities. It turns out that she is a dealer of used knitting machines.

I was set to purchase the LK 150. I decided that I would look at the Brother to humour the seller. I was resolved! That is, until I tried using the Brother KH260 - after the first swish of the carriage, the dye was cast. I knew I had to have it.

That is the benefit of purchasing from a dealer. Elaine had the machines set up in her studio and allowed me to try the machines. She showed me samples of works that she created and sells. She demonstrated how to use the punch card and how to do fair isle on the machine. Best of all, she said that I could call her for help and that she would include a yearlong membership to the Knit Nutters Club. She even included a proper machine knitting table.  

If I had purchase a used machine off of Craigslist who knows if all of the parts would be there. I certainly wouldn’t have. Caveat Emptor!

I am still learning to use the machine and I love it! It was a great purchase. Have I given up hand knitting? No way! In fact, many of the items I’ve created on my knitting machine are a combination of both hand and machine knitting. Did I mention that I’ve got a hand knit sweater still on the go?

Have you ever considered purchasing a knitting machine? Which machine(s) did you consider? I’d love to hear from you. 

Seaming Made Easy (No Really...)

Like many knitters, I find finishing garments (blocking, seaming, grafting loose ends, etc...) tedious.  Of all the end tasks, I like sewing up seams the least.  I find joining up pieces (especially sleeves) aggravating and no matter how well I line up the panels, something always slips and puckers.  Once I've sewn panels together, I almost never want to take them apart and so I'm left with a finished product that isn't up to my standards, which only further irks my perfectionism.

I've gotten around my annoyance with seaming in the past five years by exclusively knitting top down patterns on circular needles.  There's nothing better than creating garments that grow before your very eyes knowing that once the last row is knit, the garment is near complete.  For me, the joy is in the act of knitting.

HOWEVER, I have discovered a nifty knitting tool that has turned me back to knitting panels.  I just to had to share these in a review because they really do work and I had a hard time finding any reviews on-line about them.

I first saw Susan Bates Knit Klips at Fabricland.  I was reluctant to buy them as they were a little pricey at $10 for a package of 10.  At a dollar each, I wasn't sure if I wanted to invest in these small clips for a task that I despise and have been avoiding quite successfully.

The packaging claims that the clips will help to finish faster and easier.  Well guess what?  They really do.  I splurged on a package and I have since bought a second package because they really do help make the finishing process bearable.

How They Work:  Each clip has a spike down the center which pierces and joins the two panels together.  They essentially hold the two layers together just as straight pins do when sewing two pieces of fabric.  When sewing the edges together, all you have to do is remove each clip as you approach it.  And because they hold the panels securely, you can leave a project that is partially seamed and return to it later. 

The clips themselves seem quite sturdy and I imagine that they will last a long time.  This is definitely a product that is worth the cost.

  

I Heart Isabell Kraemer's designs

I can't believe that it's been a year since my last post.  That's not to say that I haven't been knitting.  I'm just really bad about remembering to take photos before giving away my work as gifts. Pictures say it all!  SO, let this be a new year!

In my last post, I wrote about working on Isabell Kraemer's "Caramel" blanket cardigan using Cascade Ecological.  It has turned out to be one of my favourite pieces - cozy and comfortable, yet stylish.  What  I have discovered in the past year is that I love Isabell Kraemer's designs.  All her patterns strike a balance been style and functionality.  Although I tend to shy away from large projects, such as adult sized sweaters, I am currently working on Kraemer's Driftwood sweater, which I will write about when that sweater is complete.

To break up the monotony of knitting a sweater, I often take a break with a smaller project and when I discovered Kraemer's "Muh-Muh's" scarf pattern, I knew it was time to put Driftwood aside for the time being.  I originally intended to make this scarf as a Mother's Day present for my one and only.  However, shortly after casting on, I realized it would be too overwhelming for my mom who's slight in build and barely 5 feet tall.  But, it was perfect for me!  

Never having used Lion's Pride Woolspun (bulky weight) before, I must admit that I quite like it.  It's soft and spongy in texture and has an interesting twist to it.  There's just enough acryllic in it to keep its shape and give it a light bounce.  I completed the scarf in a record five days and realized that I had to make one for my best friend Melana.  I created her scarf in a blue and purple scheme and boxed it up just in time for her birthday.

And now it's back to Driftwood.  I have one arm and half a torso to go.  I hope to finish it and post it soon.

I Heart Magic Loop

copyright: Wendy Gene

For the past month, I have been working on a sweater  for myself using my stash of Cascade Ecological.   I kid you not, this stash yarn has been cast on for at least 9 different projects, and every time, I've not liked the results.  And did I mention that I have 4 skeins of it in two different colours? 

Cascade Ecological has a coarse texture and the colours are slightly washed out.   I am picky and I find it does not lend itself to being the most adaptable.   So why do I have so much of it?  Well, it's a fantastic value.  The yardage is generous and the price point is affordable.  There have been many a time when I've made a trip to may favourite wool shop (The Bee Hive located in Victoria, BC) only to find out that a project, like a wrap, will cost me $92 in materials.   So, I originally purchased the yarn as a substitution for a pricier choice.

One night, while I was supposed to being doing something important, I spent an hour searching through Ravelry, looking for projects made using this type of yarn.  Lucky me, I found a post by Ravelry member BLUEDOGWOOLIES who made Isabell Kraemer's "Caramel" blanket cardigan using Cascade Ecological (shown in picture above).

The result so far is phenomenal.  The pattern involves top-down construction on long circular needles.  For the body, I have completed the neck to my waist.  I've slipped in on a number of times, and it fits like a glove.  The original pattern calls for a double knit weight yarn, but since Cascade Ecological is bulky, the knitting is coming along quickly on fewer stitches.  Out of boredom, I decided to start one of the sleeves before finishing the body.

I may be an experienced knitter, but I find knitting with double points in the round incredibly frustrating.  My yarn always gets tangled and caught, the tension is never quite right, and inevitably, one of my kids always pulls a needle out of a project that I am working on.  I only use double points because I have to. 

After knitting 5 inches of the sleeve, I noticed that my gauge on double point needles was tighter than my gauge on the circulars that I used for the body. Argghhhh!  As a perfectionist knitter, that was not acceptable.  Then I remembered my friend Charmaine mentioning a technique the used for knitting socks - she called it the magic loop method.  So off to YouTube I went, and after watching a three minute video, I was set. 

I love the magic loop method.  Essentially, it allows you to knit small, circular circumferences using a circular needle with a 32" cord.  I don't know if I'll ever use my double point needles again. 

Knitalongs: A Review

This book is truly lovely.  Knitalong celebrates the joy of knitting together and sharing one's love for the craft.  As a knitter, I am always so pleased to find out when others knit.  It's like a not-so-secret society.  Although the act of knitting is singular, it lends itself to building a community.  It is why thousands of people have come together and joined online communities, such as Ravelry.  And it is this sense of community that Larissa Brown focuses on in her book Knitalong.

Knitalong is a collection of stories, resources, and even patterns.  It explains how to find knitting groups both in the flesh and on-line.  I found Larissa Brown's stories engaging, interesting, and inspiring.  I especially liked the chapter on historical knitalongs.  Knitting together is such a beautiful concept and this book inspired me to start a knitting group at my workplace.