Author Archives: Talitha

ferox mitts

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bulky yarn often gets a bad rap

(for being, well, bulky),

but i so adore it.

let me

tell you just exactly why

that is…

you can easily find

a plethora of intricately cabled patterns

worked in beautifully fine fingering and sport weight yarns.

they are lovely, and they should be as they take ages and ages to knit up.

the time is the price you pay for

the final project’s delicacy.

truth be told,

it’s easy for me to lose motivation

what with all the notes i have to keep

just to keep from losing my place

in the mass of numbers involved in

pulling off shaping and cabling and textures

in these light weight yarns.

then,

there is bulky weight

where 1

(yes, i said 1)

properly placed

decrease

can make a curve that

hugs your wrist just the way it’s meant to

and the drama of a single cable twist can carry an entire design.

i admit that i’m a sucker for the drama of bulky yarns

like ‘frosting-chunky’ from delicious yarns.

their semi-solid colorways make me swoon a bit

and with a pattern like ‘ferox’

(you can actually knit these in a weekend)

there’s no reason you have to choose just one color.

i decided on ‘grape’ for this first pair, but i have my eye on ‘burnt orange’.

don’t you think this shade

will be the perfect pick-me-up

to whip up for myself

some weekend this winter

when the snow has washed out

all the colors outside?

i do!

‘winter’ taken from 8:22 of genesis.

bottom yarn photo courtesy of ‘delicious yarns‘

modeled photos shot by leslie of blueeyedcrafty photography

cable needle necklace in top photo hand crafted by leslie wind

 

 

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to button

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i like to sew buttons.

i’m a bit quirky like that.

most people i know do not like to sew buttons.

even fellow designers often see it as a necessary evil,

but i love the math of it. the measuring and making sure they are all the same,

makes me feel very satisfied.

so i thought i’d post some pics of how i do it

in hopes of helping someone else

learn to love adding buttons

as much as

i do.

above are the things i use to put buttons on:

thread (i like to match it to the buttons, but contrast thread can be very cool, too),

scissors, needle (small enough to fit through the button’s holes), and clip on markers.

the very first step is above.

line up the buttonhole edge with the opposite edge where the buttons will belong.

i like to clip a marker connecting the the two edges

at each spot where a button hole is,

because that’s where the

corresponding button

will be sewn.

to start off strong, i like to double the thread when sewing on buttons.

i pull the thread until the needle is in the middle of it and then knot the ends together.

when attaching the button,

i push the needle up through one hole of the button,

down through a 2nd hole in the button (diagonally across from the first)

and then slide the needle between

the two ends of the thread just above the knot.

once you pull the thread snug, this ‘locks’ the button onto the end of the thread.

when sewing a 4 hole button on,

i pick the 4 knit sts (all next to each other in a square shape) that i will sew the button onto.

i slide the thread down through one st,

up through 1 of the button’s holes, and then

up through the st diagonally across from the one i went down.

i repeat this 3 or 4  times, then do the same for the button’s other 2 holes

and the 2 remaining sts in my imagined square.

next is my button sewing ‘trick’. ready?

once the button is secure, i wrap the thread on my needle around the sewn sts

between the bottom of the button and the front of the knitting.

this creates a little ‘shank’ (see pic above)

that allows space for the height of the knitting around the buttonhole to sit

without pulling and distorting the knitting that the button is sewn to. see?

now just repeat the directions for each button and

you’re ready for cooler fall air

and to start wearing your cardi all buttoned up. yeah!

 ‘secure’ taken from 11:18 of job.

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saucon sock

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august.

around here it is

squirt gun fights and tall glasses of ice water

and knitting mainly at night when it cools off a bit after sundown.

in my dreams i have handknit socks on my feet,

but in the warm weather, my wool handknits don’t really cut it…

then along came saucon sock from kraemer yarns.

it’s a fingering weight

 in a wool-free cotton, acrylic, and nylon blend

which makes it machine wash and dryable!

how right that is for the warmer weather.

i quickly decided to cast on for my first pair of jelly rolls

by mara catherine bryner.

see the slight tonal-ness of the colorways?

that’s the cotton and the acrylic taking the same dye in slightly different ways.

i think it gives the stitches added depth and the yarn as a whole extra personality.

 i am definitely a fan.

the remaining question:

will i finish these in time to wear them this summer?

or will they have to sit happily curled up in my sock drawer over the winter

longing, like the rest of us, for next spring?

‘question’ from 22:46 of matthew.

note: now for just a little of the nitty-gritty.

i was given these skeins from kraemer yarns to review,

but, you all know me,

and a couple of free skeins of cotton blend yarn

isn’t ever going to make me say i like what i don’t.

i’m much too stubborn and pig-headed for things like that…

 

 

 

 

 

 

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mountain meadow wool

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in jr high,

at the end of lunch in the school cafeteria,

they sold creamsicles from a little ice cream cart.

on hot days, the line of kids waiting to buy

would wrap most of the day around

the big, old room.

when i first saw this yarn,

i picked out ‘natural cream color’ and ‘tesa orange’

because together they make up a creamsicle.

such yummy memories come to mind…

i was just going to

knit up a little two color swatch

in mountain meadow wool‘s alpine dk,

take a few photos, and put together this post.

honestly. that was all.

but this 3ply merino dk felt so great in my hands,

 with its just right light twist and

such fine stitch definition,

that before the swatch was even completely dry,

i’d planned out a new hat, cast on, and was working my way through the brim.

ha. guess my plans went a bit awry.

but i’m really going to enjoy the cozy of this merino when fall comes.

i wonder if wearing it will give me dreams

of creamsicles dancing

in my head?

‘hands’ taken from 19:1 ot psalms.

note: now for just a little of the nitty-gritty.

i was given these skeins from mountain meadow wool to review,

but, you all know me, and

a couple of free skeins of beautiful yarn

isn’t ever going to make me say i like what i don’t.

i’m much too stubborn and pig-headed for things like that…

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the details

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i am more likely

to be moved (in any direction)

by the details of a thing, than by the big overall picture.

for as long as i can remember,

i have always been that way.

and with two new patterns to be released this week

i’ve been poring over the pics that

leslie (of blueeyedcrafty photography) took

and, as always, it’s some

of the details that have captured my attention.

do ya want a little sneak peek of those details?

yup, that’s what i thought…

here are the outcome of some ‘supplies’ i grabbed at michael’s

last week and put to good use,

a close-up of cozy stockinette stitch

by nice and knit worsted

in ‘kelp’,

and the play of friday’s fleeting sunlight

through the lattice of a little covered bridge over a local stream.

these photos,

are so emotional for me.

each one captures feelings about light and shadow,

safety and bravery.

the fact that two knitwear photo shoots also resulted in these shots

is a small testament to art happening in unexpected ways

and in unexpected places,

and that’s the way

it should be.

‘light’ taken from 119:105 of the psalms.

the halo, the depth, the shine

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i don’t think

that i have ever caught sight of

a linen blend yarn that pulls off such a striking halo.

as a matter of fact, i’m not sure i’ve seen a linen blend with

any halo whatsoever until now.

isn’t it pretty?

and see how the linen takes to the dye

in its own special way that’s unique from

the merino’s take on the color?

that tonality gives extra visual depth to each and every stitch.

then,

as if that’s not enough

to make a knitter want to cast on something new asap,

the merino and linen fibers,

when twisted

together,

give the yarn somewhere between ‘shine’ and ‘glow’

look at the way the light catches it…i’m so excited about ‘milo’,

this new yarn from manos del uruguay.

the only downside? i’m having a bit of trouble

narrowing all the different stitches that look great in this yarn

down to just one to get started with,

but that’s exactly the kind of ‘problem’

that we knitter’s thrive on.

am i right?

‘twisted’ take from 26:31 of exodus.

note: now for just a little of the nitty-gritty.

i was given this skein from manos del uruguay to review,

but, you all know me, and

a free skein of yarn (even with a halo like this)

isn’t ever going to make me say i like what i don’t.

i’m much too stubborn and pig-headed for things like that…

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how to start the ‘depth’ cowl

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for those of you working on the ‘depth’ cowl

either on your own or as part of the #talkal going on in my rav group,

using either sprout worsted or sprout dk from ‘the fiber seed‘,

here’s a step by step photo tutorial to get you off on the right foot.

note: below each photo is the pattern text that it is illustrating.

“After winding your first skein into a ball or cake, start at the beginning of the yarn

and follow it along until you reach the first solid color section.“

(the needle tips in the pic above

are pointing at ‘the first solid color section, see?)

*******

“Find the middle of that solid color section.”

(the needle tip at the right points to the center of the solid green section of yarn.)

*******

“Starting at that point of the yarn, and using the size needles

that you got gauge on, use backward loop cast-on to CO…”

(these are my first sts i cast on using backward loop and working towards the yarn cake.)

*******

“You will be casting on through the second half of a solid color section,

a full speckled section, a full solid color section, a full speckled section,

and the first half of a solid color section.

You should end near the middle of a solid color section.

Join to knit in the round and do not add a place marker.  “

(the extra yarn before my cast on is now wrapped into a little butterfly bundle

so that i don’t get mixed up and try to knit with the tail.)

*******

“…begin knitting in St st.

When you get to the middle of the first solid color of sts,

place a marker.”

(i’ve just placed my first marker in this pic,

about halfway through the solid green sts of the first full solid section.)

*******

“Continue working in St st until you get to the middle

of the second solid color section of sts, place the beginning of the rnd marker.

This second marker will now be the beginning of all your rounds.”

(i am now back to close to where i started casting on.

it doesn’t have to be exactly where you started.

getting to about the middle of the solid color sts to place the marker is more key.)

i think that’s it.

now you have pictures

of the cast on and the next round where the markers are placed.

enjoy! being the boss of the pooling comes next.

ready?

‘started’ taken from 18:45 of first kings.

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let’s do the (mango moon) twist

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there is just something about this yarn.

do you see it?

how the cotton/linen mix rustles up this kind of luxurious shimmer

i’ve no idea, but look how it almost glows with possibility!

this is mango moon ‘twist’, a sport weight beauty.

doesn’t the ‘blueberry’ colorway remind you of faded denim,

you know, that point where your jeans are so perfectly broken in

that they are almost faded into wearing right through,

which makes them soft as butter & makes you

never ever want to take them off?

…that color.

i started this post a few weeks back,

put it on the back burner to knit a little something in this yarn

and quite honestly, got so distracted by the possibilities

(there are so many things that i thought i heard

this soft, yet strong, yarn yarn begging to become)

that i’m only getting round to posting now.

you can see how that’s a designer’s rabbit hole, right?

this  lovely stuff is still on my needles

and i’m still enjoying it.

truly, that’s knitting

at its best!

‘shimmer’ taken from 18:4 of isaiah.

note: now for just a little of the nitty-gritty.

i was given this skein from mango moon yarns to review,

but, you all know me, and

a free skein of yarn (even if it is shimmery)

isn’t ever going to make me say i like what i don’t.

i’m much too stubborn and pig-headed for things like that…

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crossway kal

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did you know about the fun we had in march?

a bunch of us did a knitalong (kal) over in my ravelry group ‘talitha’s tangles’

for the ‘crossway’ hat.

there was a custom colorway from mrs. crosby

called ‘cloverleaf’ available only through jimmy bean’s wool

(if you love green tonals, there are a few skeins left here),

lots of fun chatter and encouragement and hats.

definitely beautiful knit hats. take a look at our fo’s:

if you missed the fun, no worries.

i’ll be announcing (just about the mid-april)

the next kal

which will start

the first week of may.

this time around we’ll be knitting the depth cowl (in either dk or worsted).

keep an eye out here, or join ‘talitha’s tangles’

so you’re sure not to miss the detail packed

announcement all about that kal.

talk to you soon!

‘knit’ taken from 10:10-12 of job.

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cashmere and lace

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lace

and cashmere

in the same sentence have been,

up until this point, a combo that causes me to back quickly away

in a frantic search for oversized circular needles and weightier yarns.

that was before i met june cashmere’s lace weight.

if you remember, i adored their dk cashmere

and i continue to be excited about their business model

which involves teaching kyrgyz shepherds living on small family farms

how to how to properly collect and sort their fiber by quality grades.

warms my heart that june cashmere is

supporting the families who raise the animals

whose fibers make their lovely yarns!

when my skein of scarlet june cashmere lace weight arrived

my curiosity quickly overcame my trepidation about lace weight yarns.

look, the color is gorgeous, no?

i could see immediately

that they’ve got the twist just right

as it easily keeps the yarn from being sticky or frail

(which is the downfall i’ve experienced with other lace weight yarns).

i cast on

almost immediately

to start a pair of elegant ‘the woman’ gloves

(from ‘sherlock knits‘ by joanna johnson).

their lace stitch is easy to remember, so i can sit back and really enjoy the knitting

and the feel of the sweet cashmere softness

between my fingertips knowing it was

grown on the backs of well cared for goats

in the vast mountains of kyrgyzstan.

‘shepherds’ taken from 46:32 of genesis.

note: now for just a little of the nitty-gritty.

i was given this skein of june cashmere lace to review,

but, you know me, a free skein of yarn (even if it’s cashmere)

isn’t ever going to make me say i like what i don’t.

i’m much too stubborn and pig-headed for things like that.

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