Carol's knitting page

binder clips

2011-08-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

just a short post...
I really like using binder clips for intarsia. For the project I'm currently working on, I have every other strand of yarn on yarn bobbins. The rest of the yarn is wound into balls and clipped onto the project with binder clips.
Binder clips are a bit heavy, but the yarn doesn't get tangled. Yarn bobbins are lighter, but the yarn often does get tangled.

Trek Potholder

2011-03-19T12:58:00.000-07:00

I really like the potholder I made for NerdWars (on Ravelry) this month. (I used Peaches & Creme and size 7 needles.) Ilana MacDonald's pattern can be found here.

It's my first try at double knitting. It took me quite a few tries to get it looking the way I'd like. And, as a bonus, my gauge got more nearly even with each try. ;)

I probably did the edges "incorrectly". But, at least, they're something I like.

Here are my adventures:

The first thing I tried for the cast on edge was casting both colors on at the same time. But, I didn't like the look and so ended up working a provisional cast on in red and then knitting yellow on one side and red on the other.

For the side edge, I first tried working the edges just as I would any other stitch in the row. The edge looked sloppy. And, I wasn't sure how easy it would be to crochet the edges together when done. Then I tried slipping the first stitch of every row. That was a little better. Then I tried knitting the 2 yarns together at the end of a row and slipping the first stitch at the beginning of a row. That gave an edge that was thicker than the rest of the potholder. I finally ended up slipping the first 2 stitches of every row (1 st in each color) and then twisting the yarn so that the edges would hold together even before the crochet edging was added.

Finally, for the top .... (since I was pretty sure I had broken most of the "rules" for double knitting anyway) .... I repositioned all the sts (2 at a time) and worked a sc in red through each pair (1 of each color).

From there it was easy to single crochet around (working extra sc's in the corners).

bunny mask

2010-10-25T12:29:00.001-07:00

My DS2 completed his first knitting project -- a bunny mask -- a couple of weeks ago. I'm really proud of how well he did.

He's going to wear the mask during a charity online video-game-playing marathon just after the first of next year. As I understand it, for the game he's going to be playing, the main character pretends to be a rabbit for a while. He's going to don the mask for that section of the game.

edited to add link: Speed Demos Charity Marathon, January 6 - 11, 2011

The hat is a combination of two different patterns: a panda ski mask pattern for the main part of the hat -- with changes to the nose and mouth to make it more bunny like -- and a bunny ears pattern for the ears. (I scouted the patterns for him.)

I didn't tell him how difficult the pattern was until he was finished. ;)

Diamond Spiral Socks

2010-08-10T10:06:00.001-07:00

The August 2010 voluntary challenge in Ravelry's Sock Knitters Anonymous group is to finish the second sock of a pair. I had knitted one of each of the socks at the right. Both are based on the Diamond Spiral pattern from Stanfield and Griffiths’s Encyclopedia of Knitting. But, I couldn't figure out which of the two uses of the pattern I liked better. Then, it finally dawned on me that I could make both.

While reading another thread in the same Ravelry group, I came across a new (to me) heel, the yo-yo (German Jo-Jo heel). There is a nice description of the heel at tessknits.com and also with Silke Pieper's Farnkrautsocken. I've grown to love the heel!

So, I frogged half of the sock with the zig-zag front and reworked it with a yo-yo heel. The pattern is now in Ravelry under the name Twin Diamond Spiral Socks.

Now, another thing about me is that I often run out of yarn. This was the case here. I had only 2 skeins of Stroll Inca Gold Tweed -- which just wouldn't make it for 4 socks -- even with my narrow feet.

So, the cuffs for both socks are now Stroll Navy Tweed (which I had less than a skein left of). I still didn't have enough Inca Gold to work 2 more socks. So, the toe for the second pair of socks is also Stroll Navy Tweed. This pattern is in Ravelry under the name Diamond Twin Spiral Socks. Its cuff has 2 rows of eyelets instead of just the 1. To keep the cuff from flaring out, there are decreases in the middle of the cuff.

The pdfs can be downloaded directly from these links:
Diamond Twin Spiral Socks
and
Twin Diamond Spiral Socks.

Toby's Sweater

2009-11-20T11:28:00.000-08:00

This sweater is based on Lion Brands' Turtleneck Dog Sweater. It's been changed to fit different measurements and a different choice in yarn – and also to eliminate seaming. I hope it fits. The dog lives in another time zone.

NOTES:
I chose a 17 st cast on at the end of the BACK section since 17 is about a fourth of 70. I made the leg opening increases and decreases a few sts from the edge but think they'll look better as written below. I made the increases for the BACK 3 sts in from the sides.

SIZE:
girth: 21"
neck: 11"
length: 16"

MATERIALS:
1 skein Vanna's Choice Colonial Blue (MC)
½ skein Vanna's Choice Mustard (CC)
size 9 [5.5 mm] knitting needles
crochet hook

GAUGE:
16 sts + 32 rows = 4 inches [10cm] in garter st
Garter st pattern: When knitting back and forth, knit every row. When knitting in the round, knit one round then purl the next round. Repeat.

BACK:
With MC, cast on 29 sts. Work in garter st, increasing 1 st near beginning and end of every RS (knit) row 4 times (to 35 sts), then every other RS row 9 times (to 53 sts). Knit 3 more rows.

Change to CC and knit across 53 sts (on RS). Mark start of round. Cast on 17 sts. Place a second marker. Join to start working in the round. Purl 53 to reach end of round. Work in garter stitch to 6 ridges of CC (10 more rounds).

LEG OPENINGS:
(The chest is worked in CC, the back and sides in MC.)
Row 1: In CC, ssk, k to 2 sts before marker, k2tog. In MC, ssk, k to 2 sts before marker, k2tog. Turn.
Row 2: In MC, knit to marker. In CC, knit to marker. Turn.
Repeat Rows 1 – 2 three more times.
Row 9: In CC, knit to marker (9 sts). In MC, knit to marker (45 sts). Turn.
Row 10: In MC, knit to marker. In CC, knit to marker. Turn.
Repeat Rows 9 – 10 once more.
Row 13: In CC, k1, make 1, k to 1 st before marker, make 1, k1. In MC, k1, make 1, k to 1 st before marker, make 1, k1. Turn.
Row 14: In MC, knit to marker. In CC, knit to marker. Turn.
Repeat Rows 13 – 14 three more times (to 17 sts in CC and 53 sts in MC).
Break MC to begin knitting with CC only (in the round).

FRONT:
With CC, work in garter st in the round, to 6 ridges of CC (12 rounds), starting with a knit round. Decrease on every knit round by knitting to first marker (17 sts), k3, ssk, k to 5 sts before end-of-round marker, k2tog, k3. End on a purl round.

COLLAR:
With MC, knit around.
Set-up round: (k1, p1) 9 times, (k1, p2tog) 4 times, (k1, p1) 13 times, (k1, p2tog) 4 times, k1, p1. (50 sts).
Work in (k1, p1) rib for 4". Bind off in pattern. Fold collar back.

FINISHING
Single crochet around each leg opening in MC. Weave in all ends.

Serenity

2009-10-15T12:13:00.001-07:00

Recently, I came across a pattern for Wash's Sweater, as seen on the tv series Firefly.

I liked the cables but wanted the Serenity cable row repeat to be shorter (since I didn't want a sweater as long as the original would produce).

After quite a bit of thought, I started with a lattice cable like the one on the right (using the Open Office equivalent to Excel).

Then I took out sections of cabling to get the heart-shaped sections in the second chart. This is the chart I'm going to use for the sweater.

In both charts, the 6-space-wide sections represent 6-st-wide cables -- either knit 3 over purl 3, knit 3 over knit 3, purl 3 under knit 3, or knit 3 under knit 3. The 4-space-wide sections beginning and ending with a slash (or backslash) are 4-st-wide cables -- either knit 3 over a purl 1 or purl 1 under knit 3.

Edited (a few days later): The sweater looks better with the middle six knit sts of Rows 17, 18, and 49 of the second chart replaced by purl sts.

Finally, here is a chart for the sleeves. As before, the slashes indicate cables. I've shown only the center top of the sleeve plus one side of the sleeve -- and only as far as when the sleeve sts are to be put on a holder for use when finishing the sleeve. The circles show where increases are made. (They're more like lifted increases than yo's. They are finished in the next row by being worked twisted.) And, as before, the middle six knit sts of Rows 17, 18, and 49 of the chart look better when replaced by purl sts.

WS colorwork

2009-08-25T07:08:00.000-07:00

Recently, I decided to work a Fleegle heel in colorwork. Information on WS colorwork is most likely available on the web already. And there are probably much better ways to get the same result. But, here is my take (mostly for my own reference).

My main problem was seeing the stitch that I was going to purl into (possibly since I knit Continental style). For this colorwork, I had blue at the top, brown in the middle, and green for the bottom thread. Keeping an order like this helps keep the yarn from twisting. The picture shows preparation for purling in green with blue and brown off to the right side.

When preparing to knit in brown, I left green to the left and blue to the right. For blue, both green and brown were left to the left.

As a side note, when working on the RS, I kept the same order, with blue in my right hand, brown over the index finger on my left hand, and green over another finger on my left. This was my low tech way of keeping the yarn from twisting.

A final note (mostly to myself): After turning (for the short-row part of the heel), before making the first st in a row (after the slip stitch), wrap the other 2 yarns under the yarn to be used in that st. When I didn't do that, I had holes. For the pair of socks I made with this pattern, I left one heel with holes and one without to help me remember this.

Mobius band cast on

2009-08-14T09:40:00.001-07:00

My DS2 found a link for knitting a Mobius band and asked me to take a look at it. He was planning on knitting it, but it turned out a little too difficult for a beginning knitter.

As I was reading the directions (Method 1), I thought to myself that the band could be worked even more easily with interchangeable circs.

Cast on the desired number of sts using a Turkish cast on (over 2 circs). (In the pic, I wrapped the yarn around the circs 126 times, for the pattern I was going to make.) Then knit back (or k1p1 back) over those stitches (for the example, 126 sts). These stitches form the "soul" or center of the band. (I placed markers every 18th st because the pattern I was going to use has a repeat of 18 sts.)

Then working with the part of the band away from the loose end, take off the needle tip and the cap. Place the needle tip where the cap was and the cap where the needle tip was. The pic shows the band after the exchange. Lay the work out so nothing is twisted (as in the pic).

Mark the beginning of the round and begin knitting whatever pattern you've chosen for the band. There will naturally be a single twist in the work. Work in pattern until you've knitted all the sts off the circ (126 sts). All the sts (all 252 of them) are now on the same circ.

Replace the cap on the circ that has all the sts on it with a needle tip. Then finish the round (126 more sts for a total of 252, for the example). Continue to knit in pattern. The second pic is of a finished Mobius band, May Flowers Mobius.

A picture of the first Mobius band I knitted is here. It's the last pic in the post. It was knit with worsted weight cotton yarn.

Note: The first pic here shows 2 circs of equal length. It works out better to have the circ on which the "soul" is knitted to be a bit longer since it will eventually be the only circ in use and have to be long enough for twice the "length" of the band.

Twists, etc

2009-03-05T06:56:00.000-08:00

Recently, I was reading a German sock pattern and saw directions for making left and right twists (2 stitch cables). I immediately thought: This is so obvious. Why haven't I seen anything like this before?

My German isn't that good. This is what I think I read:
(Well, after the translation came out, I discovered that I had misread second for two , and the directions are for the usual pinch method of cabling without a cable needle. But, the following directions do work.)

For a right twist: Put the RHN (right hand needle) into the first 2 stitches of the LHN (left hand needle) as if working a k2tog. Slip the 2 sts off the LHN but do not knit them. Slip them back onto the LHN purlwise. The sts are twisted with the st nearest the tip of the LHN lying over the next st. Knit the first st tbl (through the back loop). Knit (or purl) the next st tbl. (Purl the second stitch if you want a right twist with purl back. Otherwise knit it.)

For a left twist: Just as the right twist starts out as if one were making a k2tog, the left twist starts out as if one were making a ssk -- or more accurately a ssp. Reposition the first 2 sts on the LHN needle as if working a ssk or ssp. (In other words, slip the 2 sts to the RHN individually knitwise. Then slip them back to the LHN purlwise.) Slip the RHN into the back of the 2 sts on the LHN as if working a ssp. Slip them off the LHN but do not purl them. Slip them back onto the LHN purlwise. Knit (or purl) the first st. (Purl the first stitch if you want a right twist with purl back. Otherwise knit it.) Knit the second st.

For a left twist (with fewer steps): Slip the first 2 sts on the LHN individually to the RHN. With the points of both needle facing the same direction and the LHN in front of the RHN, place the LHN into the 2 sts and slip them off the RHN. Knit (or purl) the first st. Knit the second st.

Now to decreases and increases....
After reading about making centered double decreases instead of paired single decreases for shaping sleeves, etc. in Knitting Daily, I've found that I like them a lot. I use Fleegle's method of making a centered double decrease. But, instead of working the stitch in one step as she does, I first slip the 1st 2 sts on the LHN to the RHN together knitwise. Then slip the next st on the LHN to the RHN knitwise. Finally, knit the 3 sts together through the back loop. This leaves a ridge in the center (equivalent to s2kp or cdd). On the other hand for a centered double decrease that looks like a sk2p, slip 1 st knitwise from the LHN to the RHN. Then slip the next 2 sts together from the LHN to the RHN knitwise. Finally, knit the 3 sts together through the back loop. (These have the added advantage, at least for me, of being easier to frog than the "pass st over" methods.)

I wasn't able to find anything on centered p3tog's. So, here's how I ended up making some in order to have the stitch look like a centered k3tog from the wrong side:
Leave the yarn in front. Turn the knitting over so that the yarn is now in back. What was the RHN is now the LHN and vice versa. Slip the 1st 2 sts on the LHN to the RHN together knitwise. Then slip them back to the LHN purlwise before finally knitting 3 sts together through the back loop. Slip this st back to the LHN knitwise. Turn the work over. The stitch is complete.

Finally, to get a centered double increase to match the centered double decrease (for shaping). In the same stitch, p1, yo, p1.

Here's a link for an interesting and, at least for heavier weight yarns, better, way to make a double increase. And since sometimes links disappear, here is a brief summary: k1tbl, k1 in same st. Place vertical bar of st just knit onto LHN. k1. You get a nice single increase by just working the first part of the stitch (k1tbl, k1 in same st).

Peeries

2009-02-04T06:45:00.000-08:00

some terminology before I forget it.....

quoting Elizabeth Lovick (from a Yahoo! EZasPi post):
"Peerie is the Shetland word for peedie. (And little is the English word for peedie!!) The peeries are the patterns of 1 to 4 or 5 rows deep.
The boarders [borders] are the next size up - from about 7 to about 11 rows deep. After that come the OXOs and stars...."

from the Encyclopedia of Knitting by Stanfield and Griffiths:
"Little two and three row patterns [peeries] ... are often used as a contrast between more complex bands of motifs."
"Some ... borders are built up out of peerie patterns, while others stand alone. ... (F)or a more authentic color scheme, change the background for each band of pattern."

Also, I think I have figured out why we started with a stockinette edge rather than a ribbed one. -- A curled stockinette edge would be a lot warmer.

about colors, from Elizabeth Lovick (from a Yahoo! EZasPi post):
"The earliest FIs done on FI are bright blue, bright red
bright yellow with dark brown and very pale fawn, grey or white...."

Corrugated Rib

2009-01-05T07:56:00.000-08:00

Recently, I test knit a corrugated rib hat for Amy. Corrugated ribbing is ribbing with the purl sts in one color and the knit sts in another.

Since I'd never done any corrugating ribbing before, I searched the web for info. Here are my adventures in making the hat:

First comes the supposed problem with curling and with strands peeking out from the edge. After a few attempts, I ended up with a knitted cast on (though a single cast on would work as well, and also, I suppose, a cable one).

Then, more importantly (to prevent curling), I did one round in k1p1 ribbing with the same color -- dark gray.

After this round, I added the second color. I tried having the purl color in my right hand -- but found it very difficult for me to purl English style. (I generally knit Continental style.) So, I ended up with the purl color (white) in my left hand and the knit color (dark gray) in my right hand. It worked out well -- and was surprisingly relatively fast and easy. The second picture shows both the right and wrong sides of the hat.

I used Patons Classic Wool Merino and size 7 needles. There is no problem whatsoever with curling and my DD has a nice warm stylish hat.

Picking up sts from a cast-on edge

2008-12-23T08:02:00.000-08:00

Here's an alternative way of picking up stitches from a cast-on edge. The main advantage to this technique is that it can be done in pattern -- in this case, a "k4, p3" pattern.

The easiest cast-on edge to pick up from, using this technique, is a single (or backwards loop) cast on. The single cast on has less bulk as well. (The long-tail cast on would work as well since it looks exactly like a single cast on followed by a row of knitting.)

I'll be illustrating the technique for the bottom of an armhole for a raglan worked from the top down. The first picture shows the bottom of the armhole half done. The other half will be picked up after knitting around the rest of the armhole -- so that rounds will begin and end at the middle of the underarm.

The first step is to identify the 2 loops of yarn over the first stitch to be picked up -- in this case, a knit stitch.

One of these loops starts out as the right-hand-side of the stitch and then travels left over the stitch. The other starts out as the left-hand-side of the stitch and then travels to the right.

The second picture shows a crochet hook ready to pull yarn through the top of a knit stitch.

Once the loop is pulled through, place the yarn over the waiting needle so that the free end of the yarn (as opposed to the loose end) lies behind the needle. The part of the yarn nearest the loose end lies in front of the needle.

The next stitch to be picked up is also a knit stitch. The 3rd picture shows the progress after 2 knit stitches have been picked up.

The next stitch to be picked up is a purl stitch.

For purl stitches, the technique is a bit different.

Bring the yarn to the front of the work. Draw the yarn from front to back through the 2 loops at the top of the stitch. (The loops can be seen more easily from the back of the work.)

The last picture shows the progress after 3 sts have been picked up. The next 2 sts to be picked up are also purl sts. So, the yarn should remain in front while picking up the stitches.

The last 2 sts to be picked up before working the sides and top of the armhole are knit stitches. The yarn should be moved to the back before picking up these stitches.

For the corner of the armhole, I haven't made up my mind whether or not to pick up one more stitch before knitting sts off the cable. Sometimes I pick up one more stitch from the same row; sometimes I don't.

Whichever, ..... I like to knit together the last picked up stitch with the nearest stitch on the cable (and also the first stitch to be picked up on the opposite side of the armhole with the nearest stitch on the cable).

To start working off the cable, of course, remove the cap on the cable and replace it with a needle (the same size or a smaller size than the one used to pick up sts). Slip the nearest stitch from the cable onto the needle used to pick up stitches. Then pass the second st on the needle (the last one picked up) over -- (or else, ssk). Work around, in pattern -- except, slip the last stitch on the cable onto the working needle. Pick up 1 st from the unworked side of the armhole. Place these 2 sts on a spare needle, pass stitch over, return the remaining st to the working needle (or else, k2tog)-- a mirror image of what was done on the opposite side of the armhole. Pick up the rest of the stitches at the bottom of the armhole, and begin working in the round.

Bamboo waves sock

2008-11-06T08:53:00.000-08:00

This sock is worked from the toe up. It uses a variation of the September 2008 stitch pattern by Gail Dennis aka Sockamaniac and has a Widdershins heel.

edited: Whenever, I reknit something, I can't help but change it a little. A new version of the pattern is available for free on Ravelry. It is now sized in multiple sizes, has a different way of making the leg increases, and has an eyelet cuff. Here is a pic (in Knit Picks Stroll yarn):

The original (shown below) is knit from yarn courtesy of a lady from the knitting group I belong to and owner of My Small Wonders (which is where the yarn in the pic comes from). She wanted to see what her hand-painted yarn would look like knitted up into sock. The yarn was a pleasure to work with. Here's the pattern that resulted:

Materials:
1 skein (100g) sock yarn
two size 1 circular needles

Gauge: 8 sts and 12 rows per inch (Row gauge is not important.)

Pattern (5 sts by 12 rows):
All even rows: Knit across
Rows 1, 3, 5: yo, k1, yo, ssk, k2tog
Rows 7, 9, 11: ssk, k2tog, yo, k1, yo
Reverse Pattern (5 sts by 12 rows):
All even rows: Knit across
Rows 1, 3, 5: ssk, k2tog, yo, k1, yo
Rows 7, 9, 11: yo, k1, yo, ssk, k2tog
The pattern is abbreviated "patt". The reverse pattern is abbreviated "rev patt".

Toe:
Cast on 7 st on each needle using Turkish cast on.
Knit around.
Increase every round to 13 sts per needle.
Increase every other round to 31 sts per needle.
Knit even to about a 3" length (about 14 rounds)

Foot:
On needle 1: k2, patt, k2, patt, k3, rev patt, k2, rev patt, k2 (31 sts). On needle 2: k across.
Continue until the length is about 2 1/2 " (30 rounds) shy of the total desired foot length. For where the 30 rounds comes from, look at my post on the Widdershins heel.

Gusset:
Make gusset increases every other row to 53 sts on Needle 2. Meanwhile, keep following the pattern on Needle 1. The last pattern row on Needle 1, before turning the heel, should be an even row. Do not knit across on Needle 2. Instead .....

Turn heel:
Place markers 15 sts in from either side of Needle 2, leaving 23 sts between markers. The stitches between markers are the heel sts. The sts outside the markers are the gusset sts. Then, working only on the heel sts:

Row 1: k to 4 sts before marker, kfb, k1, turn
Row 2: s1, p to 4 sts before marker, pfb, p1, turn
Row 3: s1, k to 4 sts before gap, kfb, k1, turn
Row 4: s1, p to 4 sts before gap, pfb, p1, turn

Repeat Rows 3 – 4 until there are 31 sts between markers.
(On purl rows, s1 – slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front. On knit rows, s1 - slip 1 knitwise with yarn in back.)

Heel flap:
Row 1: s1, k to last heel st, ssk last heel st and 1 st from left gusset, turn
Row 2: * s1, p1 * to last heel st, p2tog last heel st and 1 st from right gusset, turn

Repeat Rows 1 – 2 until there is only 1 st to be picked up, a right gusset st. (You'll be ending with Row 1.) Do not turn. Work the next pattern row on Needle 1. When you reach Needle 2 again:

k2tog (to get rid of the last gusset st), * k1, s1 * across.

The heel is now finished.

Leg:
Continue working in the round. Work same pattern row on Needle 2 as was worked on Needle 1. To increase, change an ssk or k2tog to a k2.
1st pattern repeat, increase on row 11 between side zig-zags.
2nd pattern repeat, increase on row 11 on outsides.
3rd pattern repeat, no increase
4th pattern repeat, increase on row 1 in the middle and then on row 11 between side zig-zags
5th pattern repeat, increase on row 11 on outsides.
6th pattern repeat, no increase
There are now 41 sts on each needle.

Cuff:
The cuff has k1, p1 ribbing. But, to get the purl stitches over the yo's, there are three p2tog's.
Next round:
k1, p2tog, (k1, p1) twice, k1, p2tog, (k1, p1) 8 times, k1, p2tog, (k1, p1) 5 times -- on each needle
Next 9 rounds: (k1, p1) around
Bind off.

I-cord cast on

2008-07-23T09:49:00.000-07:00

I've made an i-cord cast on once before but wasn't entirely happy withthe result. So, this time, I decided to look for another method. Ifound one that used M1 into the first stitch instead of kfb. But, Iwasn't entirely happy with that one either. So, I asked myself "whydoes the M1 have to be into the first stitch?"

Here is my new and different way of making an 3-stitch i-cord cast on:
1. Cast on 4 stitches.
2. Slide the stitches to another dpn or to the other end of a circ (just as you would to make an unattached i-cord).
3. k3
4. Wrap the yarn around the LHN (left hand needle) as in the picture by wrapping the yarn over the needle from the back and then under the needle again. The yarn starts out in back and ends in the back of the work.
5. Slip the 3 stitches on the RHN (right hand needle) back to the LHN purlwise.

Repeat steps 3 - 5 until there are the LHN has on it the desired number of stitches to be cast on plus 2.
To end, you can then k2tog, k1, return the stitches to the LHN, k2tog, and then return this stitch to the LHN.

Summer Square boatneck raglan

2007-08-22T08:55:00.000-07:00

This is a summery extra-short sleeve raglan. The directions are for a medium size and worsted weight yarn (with a gauge of 4 sts per inch) and size 7 needles. Size 5 needles are used for the sleeve finishing. I used 7 skeins of shine worsted yarn (525 yds). Most people would need 8 skeins.

It can be made larger/smaller by either doing more/fewer increase rows in the raglan shaping section or casting on more/fewer sts. (If casting on more/fewer sts, try to leave the neckband ratio similar. In this pattern, there are 33 sts for the front/back panel and 11 sts for each sleeve -- a ratio of 3 to 1. So, one could decrease to 27 and 9 -- again a ratio of 3 to 1 and again both odd numbers. One could also increase to 39 and 13.)

It's not necessary to work the pattern. I added it because I thought I'd get bored doing straight stockinette for the rest of the pullover. A blog entry on the pattern is here. It includes a variation of the chart made before I realized that charts are read from the bottom right corner up and across. It also includes a discussion on the best way to join yarn for a slippery cotton blend.

Neckband:
CO 92. Join.
Work *p1, k1* around for 6 rounds, starting w the p1.
*p1, k11, p1, k33* twice
p92

Upper Body:
R1: *P1, k1, m1, knit to 1 st before next purl, m1, k1* four times.
R2: Knit the knit sts and the m1's, purl the 4 purl sts

Alternate these rnds to 34 increase rnds total and 228 sts total. Then do just R2 until 45 total rnds for me (51 for most people) not including the ribbing – or until the sweater lies 1” below the underarm. Then: p1, *k3, p3* around, k3, p2 (R1 of both the sleeve and garment pattern).

Lower Body:
*K1, put the next 47 sts on a spare circ, co9, k67* twice (152 sts total). This is R2 of garment and garment underarm patts. (The 47 sts to be put aside are the sleeve sts.)

The pattern chart doesn't show up well here. Another version is here. Click on the chart to see a close-up. A picture of the sweater is at that link and as the second sweater in the link here.

Continue w R3 of garment and garment underarm patts. (Every even rnd is knit around.)

After the patt rnds, continue shaping by decreasing 4 sts every 10th row above the waist and increasing every 5th row below to end with 152 sts at desired length.

Lower Garment Ribbing:
set-up round: *(k1, p1) twice, k1, p2tog, (k1, p1) twice* around, ending either w (k1, p1) or (k1, p2tog)
*k1, p1* around for 14 rnds.
Bind off.

Sleeves:
Use a needle 1 or 2 sizes smaller than for the rest of the garment. Starting with the middle stitch, knit 4 sts from the underarm cast-on sts, knit the last cast-on st together with the nearest sleeve st, knit to the last of the sleeve sts, knit that together w the nearest cast on stitch, and then knit 3 sts to reach the middle again. (54 sts) (This is R2 of the sleeve pattern.) Continue with R3 of the sleeve patt. (Every even rnd is knit around.)

Bind off.

Tags: raglan, boatneck, pullover

K3P2 Boatneck Pullover

2007-06-15T07:28:00.000-07:00

This is a favorite pattern. The idea came originally from knitty.com's Bob. The version I made (in the May 2004 archives of this journal) is the first sweater I made that my oldest complimented me on as being stylish. That one was knitted from the top down and in the round, just as this one is.

I've learned a lot of new techniques since then. So, the pattern for this sweater is slightly different from the one I used back then. It's so much different that I decided to write it down here.
The yarn I used is Patons Classic Merino New Denim -- which was a pleasure to work with and a pleasure to wear. I used size 7 circulars and had a gauge of 4 sts and 6 rows per inch.

Neck:
CO 70. Join to work in the round.
K1, *p2, k3* 13 times, p2, k2 for 10 rounds.
Place marker after 2nd, 7th, 37th, and 42nd sts. (Each marker will be between 2 purl sts. These markers mark the centers of the raglan seams.)

Upper garment:
The raglan seams are k1, p1, (marker), p1, k1. Increases are made outside of the raglan seams on increase rounds, as follows: On increase rounds, work: m1, k1, p1, (marker), p1, k1, m1 with the m1's made to continue the p2, k3 pattern on the sleeves and garment. On the first increase round, each m1 is m1 knit. On the next two increase rounds, each m1 is m1 purl. For the next three increase rounds, it's m1 knit. ....

For a wider neckline:

Neck:
CO 80. Join to work in the round.
K2, *p2, k3* 15 times, p2, k1 for 10 rounds.
Place marker after 3rd, 13th, 43rd, and 53rd sts. (Each marker will be between 2 purl sts. These markers mark the centers of the raglan seams.)

Upper garment:
The raglan seams are k2, p1, (marker), p1, k2. Increases are made outside of the raglan seams on increase rounds, as follows: On increase rounds, work: m1, k2, p1, (marker), p1, k2, m1 with the m1's made to continue the p2, k3 pattern on the sleeves and garment. On the first two increase rounds, each m1 is m1 knit. On the next two increase rounds, each m1 is m1 purl. For the next three increase rounds, it's m1 knit.....

Alternate increase rounds with non-increase rounds to get a total of 20 increase rounds. Then k3p2 around in pattern until garment top is desired length. End with k3 before the first p2 (the center of the first raglan seam).

Lower garment:
Cast on 12 sts. Put the (purl) stitch before the first marker, plus the stitches between the first and second marker, plus the (purl) stitch after the second marker on a spare circular needle or scarp yarn. Work in pattern to one stitch before the third marker. Cast on 12 sts. Put the (purl) stitch before the third marker, plus the stitches between the third and fourth marker, plus the (purl) stitch after the fourth marker on a spare circular needle or scarp yarn. Work in pattern around. (150 sts on main circular needle.)

Work k3p2 ribbing for 14 rounds. On 15th round p2tog two p2 sts under each underarm
Start working in stockinette, doing double decreases under each underarm every tenth round until reaching natural waist. (My natural waist falls at 50th round and so I did a total of 4 double decreases.) Work evenly for about an inch. Make double increases under each underarm every fifth round until reaching the original number of stitches.
Work k1p1 ribbing for 6 rnds. Bind off (w decrease bind off)

Sleeves:
Starting with the center underarm, pick up and knit/purl in pattern until reaching the sts on the spare circ or scrap yarn. Pass the first two of these sts over the last st worked. Work in pattern to the last two sts in scrap. Slip these sts (to be passed over the next st worked). Pick up and knit/purl in pattern the rest of the underarm cast on sts – passing the two slipped sts over the first of these worked underarm sts. Work in pattern until sleeve is desired length (for a short sleeve, 20-30 rnds). (If I were to make this into a long-sleeve or ¾ sleeve pullover, I would work the ribbing until just above the elbow, then decrease evenly around by about 10%, then work in stockinette decreasing every inch or inch and a half, and finally work a p1k1 ribbing at the cuff – in order to match the sleeves more or less to the body of the sweater.) Bind off (w decrease bind off).

OJ - drop-sleeve pullover

2007-05-17T11:58:00.000-07:00

Every so often, there is a request on knitting boards such as knittyboard.com for an easy-to-make sweater. This is one of the easiest. The pattern itself is such that it can be made with almost any yarn and in almost any size. The sweater pictured is the 3rd sweater I ever made. The second sweater I ever made was to the same pattern. But, it's no longer with us. I accidently washed it on too high a heat setting and because of its acrylic content, it blossomed to twice its original size. The sweater pictured is too big for me. I made it before I learned to adjust a pattern. The stripes are optional. (There are a lot of major changes in the pattern below from the original pattern.)

Generic Drop-Sleeve Boat-Neck Pullover

The garment front and back are essentially large rectangles with ribbing at both top and lower edges. These are knit first. Then the top (leaving an opening for the neck) and the sides (leaving an armhole opening on each side) are seamed up. Last, stitches are picked up around each armhole to begin the sleeves. (I use 2 circular needles of the same size to make the garment.)

The pullover is named after a cat of ours who used to help me knit by lying on top of the yarn.

1. Calculate your gauge. Then decided how wide around you want the sweater to be.

2. Calculate the sweater circumference.

A gauge of 4 sts and 6 rows per inch and a width of 36”.would give 4 x 36 = 144 sts.
Half of these belong to the front and half to the back – 72 sts for the front.

Because of the ribbing pattern at the top, we want an odd number of sts on both front and back.

Add a st to give 73 sts for the front.

3. Then decide on how many sts to cast on for the front. Because of the nature of ribbing in general, cast on approximately 10% fewer sts

90 % of 73 is 65.7. So, cast on 66 sts.

4. Work k1, p1 ribbing for approximately 2". The knit 1 at the beginning and end of each row, except the first will make seaming easier (although some people prefer starting each row with a slip 1).

Row 1: K1, *p1, k1* 32 times, k1
Repeat Row 1 approximately 14 times. (edited: 13 Dec 2007)

5. Increase evenly across to an odd number of stitches.

Increase from 66 sts to 73 sts across.
K1, *p1, kfb, (p1, k1) 4 times*, repeat * to * across row, ending with k1
kfb is knit into the front and then the back of a stitch)

6. Knit body of sweater. (Until now the sweater has no right/wrong side.)

Row 1 (RS): K73
Row 2 (WS): K1, p71, k1
Repeat these rows until the sweater is 3 - 4" inches less than the desired length. End with a RS row.

7. Work top ribbing for 3 - 4". Bind off later.

Row 1: K1,*k1, p1* 35 times, k2
Row 2: K1, *p1, k1* 36 times
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 -- 11 times, approximately. Place sts on scrap yarn or a spare needle. Leave long enough tail to bind off 49 sts (2/3 of the sts).

8. Work sweater back the same as the front. (I worked back and front at the same time.)

9. Seam up garment top edge, leaving enough room for the neck. (Try on the garment with the top pinned together about a fourth of the way from each shoulder.)

Place garment right sides together. There will be a tail of yarn at each shoulder. Starting at one of the shoulders, bind off 20 sts from front and back (at the same time) using a 3-needle bind off. Then bind off 33 more sts from the part of the garment furthest away (using perhaps the decrease bind off). There are now 20 sts left on the back needle. Repeat this process starting at the other shoulder and the other yarn tail.

10. Seam up garment sides, leaving room for the sleeves. (Try on the garment to help decided how big a hole to leave for the sleeves.)

You can stop at this point and weave in all loose ends. The result is a nice-looking shell.

11. Pick up stitches to begin knitting a sleeve from the armhole down, starting at the bottom of the armhole. Because of the gauge, pick up 4 sts for every 6 rows on the armhole opening. Also, pick up an extra stitch at the garment side seam and the garment top seam. The total number doesn't matter, just so the same number of stitches are picked up when doing the other sleeve.

12. Knit the sleeves. Mark the starting point. This is the beginning of all rounds. For a tapered sleeve, make decreases every inch and a half, approximately.

Rounds 1-8: Knit around
Round 9: K1, k2tog, k to last 3 sts of round, ssk, k1
Repeat these 9 rounds until sleeve is desired length.

13. Make sleeve ribbing and bind off.

Round 1: *K1, p2 tog, k1, p1* around, ending either with k1, p1 or k1, p2tog
OR -- Round 1: *k1, p2tog* around, ending with k1, p1 or k1, p2tog or k1, p3tog
Round 2: *K1, p1* around
Repeat Round 2 for about an inch and a half. Bind off.

14. Make second sleeve the same as the first.

Tags: boatneck pullover knit shell

Edges

2007-03-30T07:44:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd better write these thoughts down before I forget them.

First of all, I've discovered by watching Knitty Gritty, that I've been doing my knit cast on and probably cable cast on incorrectly. I'd been slipping the newly cast on sts with the needles pointing toward each other instead of pointing in the same direction. The latter gives a twist to the bottom of the sts and makes for a looser cast on. However, for the lace project I'm working on now, I prefer my old method. (The cast on loops aren't as large.)

Secondly, although a slipped st edge look nice for scarves, it doesn't look as good on lace.
(---s1 is slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front ---)

For scarves:
Start each row with s1, k2 and end with k3.
This gives a slipped st edging with the slipped sts facing outward.
Though, .... for a feather and fan shawl, I instead began and ended each row with k1 or more. It remained flat since every very other WS row began with k17 and ended with k16. The alternate WS rows were k1, p across, k1. A garter sitch edging seemed too bunchy for the shawl.

For my latest (lace) knit project:
(RS): s1, k4, ... and end with k4, p1
(WS): s1, (k1 tbl, p1) twice, ... and end with (p1, k1 tbl) twice, p1
This lies flat and gives an edging with bumps plus a little interest and sturdiness to the edge.

For sock heel flaps:
(RS): k across
(WS): s1, p across, end with s1 (for a regular heel flap)
or
(WS): s1, (p1, s1) across, end with s1 (for thicker heel flap)
or
(WS1): s1, (s1, p1) across, end with s1
(WS2): s1, (p1, s1) across, end with s1 (for eye of partridge heel)
These give a slipped st edge that lies on the WS of the heel flap. (I like to do knit sts better than purl ones and so figured why not do the slipping on the WS.)

For dishcloths, I prefer not to start rows with slipped sts. However, the one dishcloth I made with a k1 edge didn't lie flat. So, in the future, I'm going to start and end rows with k2 (or more) or else start rows with (k1, p1) and end with (p1, k1) or some repeat of the moss st.

Finally, OfTroy has a nice summary of cast ons in several linked blog entries. (The picot cast on sounds interesting.)

Tubey variation

2007-01-31T07:34:00.000-08:00

I love Tubey, but I wanted a higher neckline. So, here's my variation of Tubey with an underarm seam and a square garter stitch neckline. The neckline goes down further in back, but not as far in front as the original. I also put in fewer stripes. The underarm seam plus the neckline construction make the neck front higher.

Gauge: 4 sts and 6 rows per inch
Materials: This pullover used 1 skein Dark Sage Red Heart Super Saver (7 oz, 364 yds), 1 skein Espresso Caron (7 oz, 355 yds), and 1 skein Claret Red Heart Super Saver (7 oz, 364 yds).

Notes: I was intending to have the striping on both the TUBE and SHRUG SLEEVE to be essentially the same. However, it turned out that the Espresso was running out as I was working on the TUBE (I'd already made one stripe of Espresso per sleeve.), and so I decided to have Claret for the bottom half of each sleeve instead of Espresso.

I made the SHRUG SLEEVEs a little bigger around at the top than I would if this were a raglan – in fact, by about an inch . It was an accident, but I'm glad that I did for the fit at the shoulder.

I use s1 instead of sl1 for slip one to avoid confusing myself. (Also, unless otherwise stated, I used a single cast on. I've been using it for dishcloths and like how unobtrusive it is.)

Where the numbers come from: The important numbers in this pattern are the number of sts around for the TUBE (176 sts, which is divisible by 8), the number of sts around at the top of the SHRUG SLEEVE (60 sts), and the length of the underarm cast on (11 sts). (The underarm cast on will work as small as zero sts but shouldn't be any larger than around 1/15th of the number of sts for the TUBE part.) All the other numbers come from these. The number of sts cast on for the SHRUG MIDDLE is 60 – 11 or 49. Take 176, divide it by 4, multiply the result by 3, and then subtract twice 11. This gives the number of rows for the SHRUG MIDDLE (110 rows). (Also, 110 plus twice 11 is the 132, which is the circumference of the TUBE, before the increase rnd.) These 110 rows are divided into thirds after subtracting the 16 rows for the side neck edgings, with 30 rows for the sides and 34 for the middle (which are all divisible by 2). The cast on for the SHRUG MIDDLE (continued) is 17, which is half of 34. The “k25” in Rows 32, etc. of the SHRUG MIDDLE is just over half of 49. The “21” in Rows 38 and 73 is 4 less than 25.

Directions:
SHRUG MIDDLE:
CO49 (using a crochet provisional cast on) – in Dark Sage
Row 1 (RS): s1, k48
Row 2 (WS): s1, p48
Repeat Rows 1 and 2. Then:
Row 31 (RS) s1, k across, end w k2tog, k1
Row 32 (WS): s1, k25, p to end
Repeat Rows 31 and 32. Then:
Row 37 (RS) s1, k across, end w k2tog, k1 (45 sts)
Row 38 (WS) s1 to begin BO of 21 sts, k4, p19 (24 sts – the last bind off leaves a loop on the needle)
Row 39 (RS) s1, k23
Row 40 (WS) s1, k4, p19
Repeat Rows 39 and 40. Then:
Row 73 (RS) s1, k23, CO 21 (45 sts)
Row 74 (WS) s1, k25, p to end
Row 75 (RS) s1, k across, end k row w kfb (an increase made by knitting in the front and then back of a st), k1
Repeat Rows 74 and 75. Then:
Row 82 (WS): s1, p48
Repeat Rows 1 and 2. Then:
Row 111 (RS): s1, k48, co 11 (60 sts)

SHRUG SLEEVE: Start knitting in the round.
Rnds 1-8: k around
Rnd 9: k around, end w ssk, k1.
Rnd 10: k1, k2tog, k to end
Repeat Rnds 1-10 to 50 sts,. Then knit without decreasing to cuff, changing colors as desired.
Rnds 1-45 in Dark Sage
Rnds 46 – 51 in Espresso
Rest in Claret – for me (with short arms), to 91st rnd.

Cuff:
*K4, k2tog, k4* to end of round, ending w knit sts
P around then k around 3 times, then purl around once more (to match the garter st neckline). Bind off. (I used a single bind off, knitting into each purl st to bind off.) -- The cuff edging matches the neck edging.

Other Shrug Sleeve:
Carefully undo crochet sts and put the other sides of the CO sts onto circ needle. Knit these sts. Then co 11 (or possibly 12) using single cast on. (60 sts on needle) (Sometimes this provisional cast on gives me the number originally cast on, sometimes one fewer.)
Follow directions for SHRUG SLEEVE.

SHRUG MIDDLE (continued):
Starting at the right side of the neck opening (the last st of Row 73), pick up and knit 1 st, CO 17 using single cast on, pick up and knit the equivalent st on the other side of the neck opening (the first “st” of Row 38). (Pick up and knit the sts here by pulling the yarn through both loops of the slip st edging from WS to RS.) Turn.
*Slip 1, k across, pick up and knit one st (the st below the one previously picked up). Turn.*
Repeat * to * until there are 27 sts on needle.

TUBE:
Slip 1, k26, pick up and knit 14 sts from the left front of the garment, pick up and knit 11 sts from the left sleeve, pick up and knit 55 sts from the garment back, pick up and knit 11 sts from the right sleeve, pick up and knit 14 sts from the right front of the garment. (132 sts)

(To pick up and knit for the front and back, first pick up the sts by sliding, for example, a size 3 circular needle through the back/WS loops of the sts to be picked up, count the loops to make sure it's the correct number, then knit the loops off of the smaller needle untwisted. To pick up and knit for the underarm, identify the sts that were cast on, then use a crochet hook to pull the yarn from the WS to the RS through the tops of the sts.)

Then:
*k1, m1p, k2* around (176 sts)
(To m1p, I did *k1, yo, k2* in this round and then *k1, p the yo twisted, k2* in the next. Then:)
*k1, p1, k2* around (176 sts)

Continue this k3p1 ribbing until garment is desired length.

Change colors as desired, making changes under right armhole.
Rnds 1 – 14 in Dark Sage
Rnds 15 – 21 in Espresso
Rnds 22 – 32 in Claret
Rest in Espresso (for me, to 78th rnd, but I'm short)
Bind off. (I used a single bind off, knitting the knit sts and purling the purl sts.)
edited to re-add pictures to directions

sleeve for Dec 2006 raglan

2007-01-11T08:29:00.000-08:00

First, some instructions and pictures on smocking in the round on 2 circular needles:

The sleeves are pretty straighforward except for the smocking, especially the smocking over 2 needles. I like 2 circs better than Magic Loop or dpn's. To smock over 2 needles, put the needle points of the 2 needles together, pointing the same direction, and draw the yarn through as if there were just one needle. I used longer circs and so left a "Magic loop" between the sts that had been worked and the sts that are now to be worked. Then finish off the sts with the first circular. Use the second circ to work the rest of the sts that were smocked, being careful to keep the horizontal yarn on the correct sides. The first pic is placing the needle between sts in order to draw it through. The second is putting this yarn onto the circ, and the third is starting to knit the yarn and st together.

Now, to continue the pattern from the previous post:

Sleeves:
Starting at the middle of the 18 sts that were cast on, pick up and knit 9 sts. Return the last st knitted to the left-hand needle. Pass the next st (This st was put on scrap.) over the st. Slip the st back to the right-hand needle. K68. Slip the next st (This st was put on scrap.). Pick up and knit 1 st. Pass slipped st over. Pick up and knit 8 sts. (end of rnd, 86 sts on needle)
Rounds 1-7: K around
Round 7: K around to third to last st, ssk, k1
Round 8: K1, k2tog, k around

Repeat rounds 1-8 until the sleeve comes to the elbow (about 50% of total usual sleeve length). This gives a bit of room around the elbow. Though, if desired, the full length sleeve can be worn pushed up to ¾ length with sort of a puffy sleeve for the top. (I worked it to the 52nd rnd, but then I have short arms.) Then:

Do smocking pattern – except decrease 2 sts about every 8th rnd, as follows, ending on Rnd 2 or 6. Then bind off as for the main part of the garment:
(Note: I started with the pattern for a rnd 1 of 74 sts = 2 mod 8 sts = 2 plus a multiple of 8 sts)

Smock over 6:Insert right needle, from front to back, between 6th and 7th sts on left needle, wrap working yarn around right needle and pull loop through to front of work, place loop on left needle; k loop together with next st onleft needle

Smocking Pattern (When rnd 1 is 0 mod 8 sts -- and rnd 8 is 6 mod 8 sts)
Rnds 1, 2, 3, 5: *P1, k2, p1* around.
Rnd 4: *P1, smock over 6, k1, p2, k2 , p1* around.
Rnd 6: P1, k2tog, p1, *p1, k2, p1* around, p1, ssk, p1
Rnd 7: P1, k1, *p2, k2* around, p2, k1, p1
Rnd 8: *P1, k2 (first repeat, k1), p2, smock over 6 (last repeat, smock over 4), k1 (last repeat, no k1), p1* around. (For the last repeat, the 4th and 5th sts on the left needle are beyond the end of the round.).

Smocking Pattern (When rnd 1 is 6 mod 8 sts -- and rnd 8 is 4 mod 8 sts)
Rnds 1, 2, 3, 5:: P1, k1, *p2, k2* around, p2, k1, p1
Rnd 4: *P1, smock over 6 (first and last repeats, smock over 5), k1 (first repeat, no k1), p2, k2 (last repeat, k1), p1* around.
Rnd 6: P1, k2tog, *p1, k2, p1* around, ssk, p1
Rnd 7: P1, k1, *P1, k2, p1* around, k1, p1.
Rnd 8: *P1, k2 (first repeat, k1), p2 (first repeat, p1), smock over 6 (last repeat, smock over 4), k1 (last repeat, no k1), p1* around.

Smocking Pattern (When rnd 1 is 4 mod 8 sts -- and rnd 8 is 2 mod 8 sts)
Rnds 1, 2, 3, 5:: P1, k1, *P1, k2, p1* around, k1, p1.
Rnd 4: *P1, smock over 6 (first repeat, smock over 4), k1 (first repeat, no k1), p2 (first and last repeats, p1), k2 (last repeat, k1), p1* around.
(Alternate Rnd 4: P1, k1, p1, k2, p1, *p1, smock over 6, k1, p2, k2, p1* around, p1, smock over 10, k1, p1, k1, p1.)
Rnd 6: P1, k2tog,*k2, p2* around, k2, ssk, p1
Rnds 7, 9,10, 11: P1, k1, *k2, p2* around, k3, p1.
Rnd 8: *P1, smock over 6 (first and last repeats, smock over 7), k1 (first repeat, no k1), p2, k2 (last repeat, k3), p1* around.
Rnd 12: *P1, k2 (first repeat, k3), p2, smock over 6 (last repeat, smock over 8) , k1 (last repeat, k2), p1* around.

Smocking Pattern (When rnd 1 is 2 mod 8 sts -- and rnd 8 is 0 mod 8 sts)
Rnds 1, 2, 3, 5:: P1, k1, *k2, p2* around, k3, p1.
Rnd 4: *P1, smock over 6 (first and last repeats, smock over 7), k1 (first repeat, no k1), p2, k2 (last repeat, k3), p1* around.
Rnd 6: P1, k2tog, *k1, p2, k1* around, ssk, p1
Rnd 7: *P1, k2, p1* around.
Rnd 8: *P1, k2, p2, smock over 6, k1, p1* around.

Top-down Crew-Neck Pullover

2006-12-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

Top-down Crew-Neck Pullover
This is a slightly wider neck raglan with a crew neck knitted from the top down and in the round with size 3 needles. The neckline is done in garter stitch. The lower half of the pullover plus the sleeves below the elbow is from the Smock pullover pattern in Knitty.com.

Notes:
My gauge for Mystic Inca yarn (after washing) is 6 sts and 8 rows per inch w size 3 needles.
The raglan seams are 3 sts wide and consist of k3 on the RS -- p3 on the WS. Excluding the raglan seams, each sleeve initially consists of 10 sts, and the back 44 sts. There are initially 10 more sts to the front than the back. This difference disappears as yo's are made to the back but not the front.
The first line, in effect, says to knit the left sleeve, the left-back seam, the back, the right-back seam, and the right sleeve and then to wrap the yarn around 1 st of the front-right seam and then to turn the work. The second line says to purl all the sts knit in the previous row, making increases next to the raglan seams, and then wrap the yarn around 1 st of the front-left seam, before turning the work. In subsequent rows, previously wrapped sts are also knit or purled at the end of a row before wrapping the next stitch and turning. Stitches from the front seams and the garment front are picked up one or more sts at a time until the front neckline is low enough.
The yo increases should be knitted twisted in the next, RS, row or round. The direction of the yo is important, as well. It should be: \ seam / , when looking at the top of the needle from the RS. It will look like: / seam \ , when looking at the top of the needle from the WS.
For worsted weight with 4 sts and 6 rows per inch, cast on 86. Allot 3 sts per seam, 4 per sleeve, 28 for the back, 38 for the front. Co 10 at each underarm to give a garment circumference of 160 sts. The first row of the sleeve then has 56 sts in total.

Neckline:
CO 130, join
k one rnd, p one rnd 7 times.

Upper garment:
k70, w&t.
yo, p10, yo, p3, yo, p44, yo, p3, yo, p10, yo, w&t
k77, w&t. (The change in the sts knit comes from the yo's and the w&t's.)
p1, yo, p12, yo, p3, yo, p46, yo, p3, yo, p12, yo, p1, w&t
k85, w&t
p2, yo, p14, yo, p3, yo, p48, yo, p3, yo, p14, yo, p2, w&t
k93, w&t
p3, yo, p16, yo, p3, yo, p50, yo, p3, yo, p16, yo, p3, w&t
(front raglan seams now fully formed)

k101, w&t
p4, yo, p18, yo, p3, yo, p52, yo, p3, yo, p18, yo, p4, w&t
(number of st in back now equal to front)

k109, w&t
p2, yo, p3, yo, p20, yo, p3, yo, p54, yo, p3, yo, p20, yo, p3, yo, p2, w&t
k119, w&t
p4, yo, p3, yo, p22, yo, p3, yo, p56, yo, p3, yo, p22, yo, p3, yo, p4, w&t
k129, w&t

Continue in this manner until there are only 24-30 sts (4-5" worth of sts -- I chose 26 sts) left in front that haven't been worked -- in which case do not w&t on the last RS row. Instead start knitting in the round, as follows:

Note: When coming to the wrapped st that hasn't been worked yet, pick the wrap up and knit it with the adjacent/preceding st instead of the st it was wrapped around.

Rnd 1: *k to next "k3 seam", yo, k3, yo, k to next "k3 seam", yo, k3, yo* twice
Rnd 2: k around

Alternate Rnd's 1 and 2 until there are 58 sleeve sts (excluding the seam).
Then do Rnd 2 thrice followed by Rnd 1 until there are 66 sleeve sts.
Then do only Rnd 2 until top of garment is desired length. Then

*k to next "k3 seam", k1, co18, put next 70 sts on a spare circ needle or yarn (for the sleeve)* twice, k to 1 st before middle of left underarm. This (the left side) is now where rnds start and end. (240 total sts for garment)

Lower garment:
K around for 8 rnds (about 1").
Start smocking pattern, working the pattern on the RS and in the round (The original pattern is worked flat.):

Smocking Pattern (Worked over a multiple of 8 sts)
Rnds 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, & 7: *P2, k2* 60 times.
Rnd 4: *P2, smock (--insert right needle, from front to back, between 6th and 7th sts on left needle, wrap working yarn around right needle and pull loop through to front of work, place loop on left needle; k loop together with next st on left needle), k1, p2, k2* 30 times.
Rnd 8: *P2, k2, p2, smock (--insert right needle, from front to back, between 6th and 7th sts on left needle, wrap working yarn around right needle and pull loop through to front of work, place loop on left needle; k loop together with next st on left needle), k1* 30 times. (For the last repeat, the 6th and 7th sts on the left needle are beyond the end of the round.).

End with Rnd 2 or 6. Bind off loosely (single bind off, purl p sts, knit k sts).

Sleeves:
The directions for the sleeves are too complicated and lengthy to be added in this post. Instead, they are in my next post:

http://carol-myknittingpage.blogspot.com/2007/01/sleeve-for-dec-2006-raglan.html

sock toes and heels

2006-10-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Here are some general ideas on toes and heels. I've found that I like them curved instead of straight. In general, for a toe, my current favorite is to cast on about an inch of sts using the Turkish cast on, then determine the number of increase rounds needed. Do increase rounds every round for the first half of the increase rounds needed. Increase every other round for the rest less two. Then increase every third round twice. Finally, if needed for the top, make increases on top For example:

Wrap yarn around 2 circ needles 9 times. k9 off of top needle. k9 off of bottom needle.
R1: k1, m1, k..., m1, k1 on top needle, k1, m1, k...., m1, k1 on bottom needle.
Repeat R1 to 19 sts on each needle
Alternate R2 (k across) with R1 to a total of 25 sts per needle
Do R2, R2, R1 to a total of 29 sts per needle
Do R2 on top needle and k across on lower needle. (31 sts on top, 29 on bottom)

My favorite heel is the Widdershins heel. It's a toe-up heel-flap heel with no sts to pick up. To make calculations for the heel, determine the number of rows desired for the heel flap (in the example below, 28 rows). Then determine how wide you want the bottom of the heel (in the example below, 23 sts). Finally, decided how wide you want the heel flap (in the example below, 31 sts).

Approximately 4" (for me) before the end of the foot, start making gusset increases as in the Widdershins pattern. For a heel flap of 28 rows and 31 sts wide and a bottom heel 23 sts wide, increase to 51 (= 28 + 23) sts then work this variation of the Widdershins heel on the middle 23 sts. (The middle 23 sts become the heel flap. The 14 sts on either side are the left and right gussets.)
Row 1: k to 2 sts before end of heel sts, inc1, k1, turn
Row 2: s1, p to 2 sts before end of heel sts, inc1, p1, turn
Row 3: s1, k to 3 sts before gap, inc1, k1, turn
Row 4: s1, p to 3 sts before gap, inc1, p1, turn
Rep rows 3 and 4 until there are 29 heel sts (2 fewer than final heel flap size). Then
s1, k to 4 (or 5) sts before gap, inc1, k1, turn
s1, p to 4 (or 5) sts before gap, inc1, p1, turn

(The numbers in red are a change from the original.) Then to make the heel flap:
Row 1: s1, k to last heel st, ssk last heel st and 1 st from left gusset
Row 2: s 1, p to last heel st, p2tog last heel st and 1 st from right gusset

Note: The chart is an old one -- made before I switched from numbering from the top down to from the bottom up.

Karen's Sugar-Free Diabetes Walk Socks

2006-09-09T09:34:00.000-07:00

Karen's Sugar-Free Diabetes Walk Socks is an easily knit cabled sockfrom KnittinMom in sportweight yarn for size 3 needles (orthereabouts). Proceeds from the sale of the pattern will aid inthe fight against diabetes.

tweed-stitch v-neck

2006-07-19T12:07:00.000-07:00

I've frogged my DHs languishing sweater to the neck ribbing and am now working it in tweed stitch. Here are the first few rows -- because I'm surprised at how well it's working out. Photo added 8/21/06 is of my DS modeling the sweater. (I'm planning on giving my DH the sweater for Christmas -- though the original sweater I had planned to have ready for his birthday a couple of years ago.)

Note: s1 is slip 1 st purlwise with yarn in front.

CO 90 sts (= 7 + 33 + 7 + 43). Place markers after 7th, 40th, 47th, 67th, 71st, and 90th sts.

Ribbing:
R1: *p1, k1* in patt to 4th marker,starting w p1, (m), k1, p1, k1, (m), *p1, k1* in patt to end ofround, ending w k1
R2: *p1, k1* in patt to 4th marker, m1,(m), k1, p1, k1, (m), m1, *p1, k1* in patt to end
Repeat R1-R2 for 6 rows total. (96 ststotal)
Knit around, except purl 1st, 7th,41st, and 47th sts. Purl around.

Body:
Put the 49 sts between the 3rd and last markers in scrap. Stitches will be removed from scrap one at a timeby a wrap and turn.
R1: (m), p1, k1, m1, s1, k1, s1, m1,k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1, s1, k1, s1,m1, k1, p1, (m), w&t
R2: (m), p9, (m), p35, (m), p9, (m),p1, w&t
R3: k1, (m), p1, k1, m1, s1, k1, s1,k1, s1, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1,s1, k1, s1, k1, s1, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, w&t
R4: p1, (m), p11, (m), p37, (m), p11,(m), p2, w&t
R5: k2, (m), p1, k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1,m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1, s1, *k1,s1*, m1, k1, p1, (m), k2, w&t
R6: p2, (m), p13, (m), p39, (m), p13,(m), p3, w&t
R7: k1, s1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1, *s1,k1*, s1, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1,s1, *k1, s1*, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, s1, k1, w&t
R8: p3, (m), p15, (m), p41, (m), p15,(m), p4, w&t
R9: k1, s1, k2, (m), p1, k1, m1, *s1,k1*, s1, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1, k1, m1,s1, *k1, s1*, m1, k1, p1, (m), k2, s1, k1, w&t
R10: p4, (m), p17, (m), p43, (m), p17,(m), p5, w&t

--- Now change to m1 on the front partof the sweater,as well.
R11: k1, s1, k1, s1, m1, k1, (m), p1,k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, *s1, k1*, s1, m1, k1, (m),p1, k1, m1, s1, *k1, s1*, m1, k1, p1, (m), k1, m1, s1, k1, s1, k1,w&t

--- One or more of subsequent odd rows ends with s1, k2tog (last st plus 1 st from scrap), w&t,
and one or more subsequent even rows ends with sl, p2tog (last st plus 1 st from scrap). w&t,
in order to get the same number of sts in front and in back.

Further: (added 8/1/06) For a gauge of 4 sts per inch with the garment 192 sts (48") around and the underarm seam 13 sts long, makeraglan increases until the back is 83 sts wide.
Also, at the point when the bottom of the v consists of only one unwrapped stitch, end with sl, k1, s1 (at the bottom of the v), placemarker, then start a new (RS) round by knitting around (except for the raglan seams). All work will be done in the round from then onwith new rounds starting at the marker (one stitch past the center front).

The sleeves: (added 8/20/06) (note: The last sleeve row/round was a s1k1 one.) Identify the 13(or whatever number used of) cast on stitches (I now use abackward loop cast on). Then starting with the middle stitch,knit 6 sts from the cast on, knit the last cast on st togetherwith the nearest sleeve st, knit to the last of the sleeve sts,knit that together w the nearest cast on stitch, and then knit 5sts to reach the middle again. Then to start the new round (which for my convenience I call sleeve round 1), look at the sleeve ststo see whether to start w a knit or slip stitch and then work the *k1, s1* or *s1, k1* pattern around. (There are an even number of sts on the sleeve.) For the second k2tog, skp (slip 1, knit 1,pass slipped st over). For the first k2tog, do the opposite(kbps? - knit 1, slip this st back to the left-hand needle, pass next st over the slipped-back st, slip the slipped-back st to the right hand needle). Because I like tapered sleeves, I decreased 2 sts every 10th round (a knit row) by k1, k2tog, k to last 2 sts of the round, ssk. (With this set of decreases, every round ending in 1, 5, and 9 was the same;every round ending in 3 and 7 was the same.) Then when the sleeve is long enough, end w a knit round. Then I did the same thing I did for the bottom of the sweater. First knit around with decreases to get to the correct number for the ribbing. Purl around . Knit around starting the first stitch with a jogless jog to keep the purl jogless. Knit around. Then do the ribbing. (edited 10/18/06 to use backwards loop cast on instead of provisional cast on -- since the chain st provisional cast on gives either one more or one fewer st when picked up)

Wyvern sock

2006-07-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

My most recent sock is a toe-up Wyvern sock (http://marniemaclean.com/patterns/Wyvern/) with mix and match toe and heel. It has a closed toe from http://knottygnome.blogspot.com/2005/11/free-pattern-sporty and http://secure.elann.com/ShowFreePattern.asp?Id=5024 and a toe-up heel-flap heel from http://www.socknitters.com/toe-up/index.htm. It's in 100% acrylic Moda Dea yarn and knit with size 3 needles ....and more importantly, I finished off the yarn. By the way, Ididn't work ribbing on the bottom of the sock, but I did work ribbing on the back of the sock from the end of the heel upward. I really like the wider version of the toe-up heel-flap heel.

a couple or more knitting hints

2006-06-17T14:04:00.000-07:00

Some hints that I've learned from knittyboard.com:
ssk: slip 1 knitwise, return stitch to left-hand needle, k2tog through back loop
a very loose bind off:: single crochet in stitch, chain 1, repeat for next stitch, etc
to figure out which needle to use: Double yarn. The lowesthole in the needle gauge that the doubled yarn will easily fit throughis the needle size to use.
easy make 1 (m1): yo, then in the next row, knit or purl the yo twisted

Hedera

2006-05-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

I actually finished this Hedera sock a couple of weeks ago. It was supposed to be my April socks for the sock-a-month KAL, but now it's my May one. I thought I'd better post this before it became my June socks.Surprisingly, for me, I followed the pattern almost exactly.
The first difference is that I made it knee high. I was hoping that it would stay up, but the yarn isn't springy enough for it to stay up. I didn't do anything special to make it knee high except for repeating the main pattern more times than called for.
When I got past the heel, I was worried about not having enough yarn (and didn't especiallycare for the cushiness of the heel). So I redid it as a plain heel.
Finally,I wanted the main part of the sock to be tighter, and so I did thegusset decreases until there were 21 instead of 29 sts on the sole. (25would have been ok, too.) For the toe, I transferred sts from the topto the sole so that there were the same number of sts on both.
Thesocks are done in Fortissima Colori Disco Socka Color, which is 71%superwash, 26% polyamide, and 3% metalized polyester. It's the firstexpensive sock yarn I've ever used. At least, I consider it expensive.For me, with short legs and narrow feet, it took 2 - 50g balls to makethe socks. To get the colors to match, I did one sock by taking yarnfrom the outside of the ball. I did the other sock on the other ball bytaking yarn from the inside.
If I had it to do over, I would have used smaller needles. (I used size 3 since I hadn't yet bought any size1.) I would have also done the second yo differently. I did both yo's in the pattern by yarning over front to back. If I had it to do over, Iwould have done the second one back to front -- hopefully, to keep the holes approximately the same size.
My other project, other than unpacking boxes and working in the garden, is Tempting II.

Short row socks

2006-03-13T13:14:00.000-08:00

I decided to try my hand at short-row toe-up socks. Since I have high arches, a narrow heel, and a flat front to my foot, I made a few changes to the generic pattern for toe-up socks. (The toe and heel are a Sherman sock toe and heel.) The socks are 100% acrylic Moda Dea yarn. Here (edited September 2009) are my alterations to the general directions:

(s1 = slip 1 purlwise unless otherwise noted)

co 22 (using Turkish co -- 22 sts per needle)
Then using only one needle,
turn, p22, turn
Work Sherman sock toe:
s1, k20, turn
s1, p19, turn
s1, k18, turn
...... , end with:
s1, k10, turn -- for a flattish toe (approximately half of 22, the number of sts co)
s1, p8, p enc (s1, pick up st below next st, return both sts to LH needle, p2tog), turn
Then:
s1, k8, k enc (s1 knitwise, pick up st below next st, return both sts to LH needle, k2tog tbl), turn
s1, p9, p enc, turn
s1, k10, k enc, turn
....., end with
s1, k18, k enc, s1 (22 sts on needle), do not turn

Start working in the round (using both needles).
Work k44 around (or in pattern) to 3" shy of total foot length. One circ has the 22 sole sts, the other has the 22 top/insole sts.
Work 6 more rounds.
On odd rounds on circ w sole sts, k1, m1, knit to last st, m1, k1 -- for a total increase of 6 sts to sole.
Then work short-row heel on these 28 sts:
s1, k26, turn
s1, p25, turn
...., end with
s1, k6, turn (approximately a third of 22, the number of sts co)
s1, p4, p enc, turn
Then:
s1, k4, k enc, turn
s1, p5, p enc, turn
s1. k6, k enc, turn
s1, p8, ptog next st w wraps, wrap and turn
...., end with
s1, k24, k enc, turn
s1, p25, p enc, turn
s1, k26, k enc, do not turn
(The last two enc's involve picking up sts from the insole circ.)

Work 10 rounds by knitting around. (Now: 28 sts on sole, 22 sts on top.)
Work 10 round of k2, p2 (or else, k1, p1)
Then: k2, slip 2 with yarn in front for next round (or else, k1, s 1 wyf)
Then: slip 2 with yarn in back, p2 for next round (or else, k1 wyb, p1)
Finally, BO w loose bind off such as crochet bind off.

v-neck

2006-03-05T11:48:00.000-08:00

Here are the directions I made up for doing a v-neck raglan sweater.

For a sweater for me, I cast on 56 sts (front:27, each side: 6, back: 17). For my DH, I cast on 64 sts (front:29, each side: 13, back: 19). I put markers where the sides meetthe front/back. The center panel on the sweater in the picture isthe Trinity stitch. (It's known by a few other names aswell.) Because it's based on an even number of stitches, I neededto k2tog at the bottom of the V. I also should have started it alittle higher on the sweater.

Ribbing R 1: Work ribbing around starting at the left-front marker. – EXCEPT when reaching the stitch before the center front:k1, (marker), p1, (marker), k1. Continue the ribbing as a reflection of the pattern just before. Place markers also where front or back and sleeves meet (4 markers). [The p1 is the center front stitch.]

Ribbing R 2: Work ribbingaround. Inc1, k1, (marker), p1, (marker),k1, inc1. Work ribbing around.

Repeat Ribbing R’s 1- 2 for a total of 4 rounds (or more, if desired). Then, knit around,except purl any purl sts next to a marker. Purl around to keepribbing from curling out. Increase on even rounds as in Ribbing R 2. (End of ribbing)

Then: Designate the front garment section asscrap, but do not take off the needle. Starting at the left-front marker:

R’s 1- 10: Work pattern around on stitches not in scrap. End with Ending-A. On odd rows (right sides) only, make raglan increases to garment back and sleeves but not to garment front (for total of 6 increases per round).

Ending-A: Knit (or purl) laststitch and then knit (or purl) one stitch from scrap. Wrap and turn.

R’s 11 - 12: Workpattern around. Make raglan increases on odd rows (right sides) oras appropriate. (There are 8 increases – 4 pairs – in each oddrow.) End with the Ending-N. (Note: The number ofstitches between the last stitch and the nearer center marker is nowa multiple of 3.)

Ending- N: Knit (or purl) last two stitches together. Knit (or purl) together two stitches from scrap. Wrap and turn.

R’s 13 - 14: Work pattern around. Make raglan increases on odd rows (right sides). End with the Ending-A.

Repeat R’s 11 - 14, until there are the same number of stitches in front as in back. Then repeat R’s 13 – 14 until there are 1 to 3 stitch(es) left in scrap. Work pattern around.

Jaywalker socks

2006-02-20T12:10:00.000-08:00

These are my second pair of socks -- Jaywalkers for my DH. I used Magic Stripes yarn and 2size 3 circular needles. Here's what I did -- again more for my benefit -- than anyone else's:

CO 68 st -- when I cast on 60 sts, itfit my foot well
Ankle: work k2p2 ribbing 14rounds, then:
round 1: k68
round 2: *kfb, k5, k3tog tbl, k5,kfb* 4 times
for 13 repeats of pattern (26 completerounds). Wrap and turn.
Heel: sl, p33, wrap and turn,then
1: *s1, k1* 17 times, turn (34 totalstitches, 34 = 68 / 2)
2: s1, p33, turn
for 16 repeats of pattern (32 completerounds).
Turn heel: s1, k18, (1 + 18 = 68/ 4 + 2), k2tog tbl, k1, turn
s1, p5 (5 = 2*2 + 1), p2tog, p1, turn
s1, k6, k2tog tbl, k1, turn
s1, p7, p2tog, p1, turn
.... end w
s1, p16, p2tog, turn
Gusset:
s1, k8, (place marker), k9 , pick up 17sts along slip st edge, pick up 1 st at corner, k 34 for top, pick up1 st at corner, pick up 17 sts along slip st edge, k9, (marker -- endof round -- at center of sole)
Then:
1: k to 3 sts from corner, k2tog tbl,k1, *kfb, k5, k3tog tbl, k5, kfb* 2 times for top, k1, k2tog, k__
2: k to corner, k34 for top, k__
end when 68 sts total.
Sock body:
1. k17 , (corner), *kfb, k5, k3tog tbl,k5, kfb* 2 times for top, (corner), k17
2. k68
for 48 total (24 pairs of) rounds (to2" from final length), end w round 2.
Shape toe:
k14, k2tog tbl, k1, (corner), k7, k3togtbl, k5, kfb, kfb, k5, k3tog tbl, k7, (corner), k1, k2tog, k14
k around (64sts)
k12, k2tog tbl, k1, (corner), k6, k3togtbl, k5, kfb, kfb, k5, k3tog tbl, k6, (corner), k1, k2tog, k12
k around (60sts)
k10, k2tog tbl, k1, (corner), k5, k3togtbl, k5, kfb, kfb, k5, k3tog tbl, k5, (corner), k1, k2tog, k10
k around (56sts)
Then alternate:
k to last 3 sts, k2tog tbl, k1,(corner), k1, k2tog, k__, k2tog tbl, k1, (corner), k1, k2tog, k__
k around
to 40 sts total, then, for every round,do
k to last 3 sts, k2tog tbl, k1,(corner), k1, k2tog, k__, k2tog tbl, k1, (corner), k1, k2tog, k__
to 16 sts total
work to corner in knit, then bind off

my first pair of socks

2006-01-23T08:44:00.000-08:00

This is the first pair of socks I've knitted. People at knittyboard.com were talking about how nice hand-knitted socks are, and so I decided to give it a go. I used Magic Stripes yarn and 2size 3 circular needles and a generic sock pattern. Here's what I did -- more for my benefit -- than anyone else's:

CO 52 sts onto one circular needle (what I'll be calling the second needle). Pull a loop (a la magic loop method) between the 26th and 27th sts. Taking another circular (what I'll be calling the first needle), join and work (k2,p2) on this needle, ending w k2 for a total of 26 sts on this needle. Using the"second" needle, work the rest of the round, starting and ending w p2 for a total of 26 sts on the needle. Work (k2p2) pattern for 26 rounds -- knitting the first half of the round with the"first" needle and the second on the other. At the end ofthis round, wrap and turn. The next part (heel) is worked using the "second" needle only.
slip 1, p25, wrap and turn
*slip 1, k25, turn, slip 1, p25, turn* -- repeat for a total of 27 rows, then still using the same needle
slip 1, k13, k2tog tbl, k1, turn -- slip 1, p2, p2tog p1, turn -- slip1, k3, k2tog tbl, k1, turn -- slip 1, p4, p2tog, p1, turn -- etc ending w slip 1, p12, p2tog, (no p1), turn
(Then to shape the gusset): slip 1, k13, (place marker), pick up and knit front loops produced by the slipped stitches (about 14 sts), pick up and knit one stitch from the corner. Using needle 1, work k2p2 pattern across,place marker, pick up and knit one stitch from the corner, pick p and knit front loops produced by the slipped stitches (about 14 sts). -- first round of gusset shaping
next round: needle 2 -- k to 3 sts from end, k2tog tbl, k1. needle 1 -- k2p2 pattern to marker, k1, k2tog, k to end
alternate this round with a round worked according to pattern until there are 20 sts on needle 2 and 32 sts on needle 1. Transfer last 6 sts from needle 1 to needle 2. (Needle 1 has 26 sts ink2p2 pattern. Needle has 26 k sts.)
Work patt until sock is 2" shy of finished length. On odd rounds, k around. On even rounds, end work on needle w k2tog tbl, k1 and start w k1, k2tog (for 4 dec's per round). Continue to 6 sts on each needle. Turn work inside out and bind off sts together.

adding a sleeve to a raglan sweater

2006-01-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

Here are my current thoughts on adding a sleeve to a raglan sweater. Since I like to knit from the top down, at the time I'm ready to add a sleeve, the body is complete, most of the sleeve stitches are on a spare circular needle, and the rest of the sleeve stitches will be picked up from the stitches cast on at the bottom of the armhole. The only difference between this and what I've done before is that I've now decided to start working the sleeve at the center of the underarm seam.

To start the sleeve: With the garment right side out, identify the stitches that were cast on at the bottom of the sleeve opening. (Using a crochet hook,) pull yarn from the nearest stitch (on a spare circular needle) through the top of the right-most of these stitches and then place the stitch back on the needle. Do the same for the left-most stitch. (Disregard these two cast on stitches for the following.) Slide a double-pointed needle --or a 16" circular needle -- into the garment to the right of the sleeve opening (to keep the needle from slipping). Starting with the middle cast-on stitch (or the stitch just to the left of middle), (with a new ball of yarn) pick up and knit (or purl) this stitch and each of the remaining underarm stitches going to the left. (Knit the knit stitches, and purl the purl stitches.) Work the pattern around the sleeve and then pick up and knit (or purl) the remaining cast on stitches at the bottom of the armhole. -- finishing round 1 for the sleeve.

To convert to raglan

2005-09-21T04:13:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to make a pattern from the newest issue of knitty.com. I always like to know how a pattern is going to fit before making it -- and sometimes I redo patterns completely. So I had to devise a way to redo patterns or, at least, compare them to my other patterns. Here's my formula for converting a pattern to raglan.

First: Determine how many more garment stitches than sleeve stitches there are.
BB = number of garment stitches (from pattern) below the underarm divided by 2
SS = number of sleeve stitches (from pattern) near underarm seam (Include stitches belonging to underarm seam.)
Add 2 (or 4) to SS -- 2 if there are an odd number of stitches in the raglan seam, 4 if an even number. (I arrange the raglan seam so that just over half of it belongs to the sleeve.)
D = BB – SS

Second: Measure your neck. Multiply by 120%. Multiply by the gauge. Call this number N.
OR: Second: Count the number of stitches at the neckline. Call this number N.

Third: Calculate the number of stitches at the neckline (so that B – S = D).
S = (N / 4) – (D / 2) -- number of sleeve stitches at neck
B = (N / 4) + (D / 2) -- number of garment-back stitches at neck
The type of neck chosen determines F, the number of garment-front stitches at the neck.
B and S should be made into whole numbers -- and possibly tweaked further to fit in with the ribbing and/or garment patterns.

Fourth: Determine U, the length of the underarm seam, and R2, the number of rows with raglan decreases/increases (decreases if knitting from the top down, increases if knitting from the bottom up). (One choice for U is BB/6. Another choice is the value of U from the pattern.)

After U is chosen, then R2 = (BB – B – U) / 2. U may have to be changed in order to make R2 a whole number. Also check that 2 * R2 < R, the number of rows above the underarm seam. (Raglan decreases/increases are usually taken every other row – and sometimes every fourth row. For this reason, 2 * R2 needs to be less than R.)

casting on

2005-09-17T06:42:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I've been recommending the wrong type of cast on for starting a sweater. What I should have said was use a cable cast on (instead of a chain cast on). Directions for the cable cast on can be found at : http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit1.htm. The cable cast on is easy to do, doesn't twist much, and is fairly substantial. It's not too good, however, in places where one wants to pick up stitches -- such as at the underarm sleeve.

Easy-to-Make Textured Scarf

2005-08-26T08:20:00.000-07:00

Since, I've almost finished the afghan I was making, my thoughts have turned to fall projects.
Here is an easy scarf to make in any width or length and with just about any type of yarn. Variegated yarn makes the scarf look too busy, though. For my first scarf, I used #6 needles with medium yarn and cast on 21 stitches. For my second scarf, I used #8 needles with bulky yarn and cast on 15 stitches. For my third scarf, I used #6 needles with medium yarn and cast on 27 stitches.
The pattern was inspired by Jacqueline Fee’s Beaded Rib Scarf, Sweater Workshop, p227. The main changes are the increase and decrease rows – to say exactly where and how many stitches to increase and decrease – and the pattern itself – to have more knitted stitches than purled ones. (I would much rather knit than purl. ) I didn’t put fringes on either scarf – although it’s OK to do so.

To make the scarf:
Cast on a multiple of 3 stitches.
Knit across.

Then: s1pyif (slip 1as if to purl, yarn in front), *k1, kfb (knit in front and back of next stitch), kfb * (repeat * to *), end k2. (There are now 3 mod 5 stitches – three plus a multiple of five.)

Repeat pattern rows 1 and 2 below until the scarf is at least 47" long:
1: s1pyif, k2, * p2, k3 * (repeat * to *), end p2, k3.
2: s1pyif, k2, * k2, p1, k1, p1* (repeat * to *), end k5.
End with pattern row 1.

Then: s1pyif, *k1, k2tog, k2tog* (repeat * to *), end k2. (There are now the same number of stitches that were cast on.)
Finally: s1pyif, then cast off, treating the last 2 stitches as one (to square the corner).

edited 12/21/06: Instead of the last decrease row and the cast off row, cast off and decrease at the same time (pso is pass stitch over, loosely, as in the ordinary single bind off):

s1pyif, *k1, pso, k2tog, pso, ssk, pso* (repeat * to *), end k2tog, pso. Then pull yarn through and weave in loose end.

Raglan seam thoughts

2005-06-06T02:37:00.000-07:00

Here are some thoughts about the shape and structure of a raglan seam.

The raglan seam itself can be as simple or as complicated as one likes. It can be as simple as a single knit stitch or as elaborate as a cable pattern (p2cable4p2) -- as I saw on an episode of Buffy, the Vampire Slayer -- or a k1p2k1 pattern as in some of the sweaters I've posted directions for.

I like to be able to easily match up patterns on the sleeve with patterns on the front of a sweater, and I've also discovered a way to keep there from being holes near the bottom of the armhole -- which involves hiding 1 or 2 stitches from the raglan seam. For a raglan seam with an odd number of stitches (as in the boat-neck sweater pattern in this blog), allocate the central stitch to the sleeves. For a raglan seam with an even number of stitches(as in the ribbed sweater with turtleneck option pattern in this blog), allocate the central two stitches to the sleeves, and then just before the underarm seam k or p tog to give a single central stitch. The central stitch will disappear when the sleeve is added.

Increases are made on both sides of the seam (paired increases). In general, increase on every odd row until 3 rounds of increases are left. Increase every fourth row after that. Finally, knit without increasing until reaching desired number of "rows above underarm seam".

To match designs on the sleeve and garment body, keep this in mind. With S the number of sleeve stitches at the neck and B the back and x the extra raglan stitches belonging to the sleeve (2 or 4), if two sleeve stitches have z stitches between them, the corresponding front (or back) stitches have z + B – S + x stitches between them.

ripple afghan

2005-05-31T07:53:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a little time off from knitting now. The garden needs work. The only project I'm working on now is a ripple afghan which I inherited from my mother-in-law about 10 years ago. I finished a granny square afghan that my grandmother had started. (That was in the 70's.) Now I'm finishing one that my mother-in-law only bought the kit for. It's really simple to make -- perfect for something to do while watching TV. (I changed the pattern a little from the directions. I'm incapable of following directions exactly. I always think that this, that, or the other would be a little better if I did this instead of that.)

Chain a multiple of 25 plus 4 (304 for the one I'm making).
Then for each row after that:
chain 1, single crochet 1 (in last stitch of previous row), single crochet in back loop of next st, * skip 1, sc 11 (in back loops), in next back loop sc 3, sc 11 (in back loops), skip 1 *. End with sc 1 (in back loop), sc 1.

Note: The part between *'s is repeated until the end of the row. Between sets of sc 11, there will either be skip 2 stitches or sc 3 in same stitch. Change colors after every 8th row.

Recipes

2005-05-15T02:23:00.000-07:00

I'm moving my recipes to http://carol-recipes.blogspot.com/ -- since I just found out that a person can have more than one journal.
edited later to show the blogspot link instead of the aol one.

Math for the neckline – neck ribbing

2005-05-03T16:25:00.000-07:00

Here's the math that I use to figure out how many stitches to cast on for the neck.

If you don't like math, don't read this because a lot of it is in mathematical shorthand.

These calculations give a neck that is at least 120% the size of the person's neck (for comfort). The lower case b, s, and f are for adjusting the number of stitches cast on to give some symmetry. C = garment circumference times the gauge and N = person’s actual neck size times the gauge. Then choose:

B = 30 % of N + 7% of C + b -- the number of stitches at the neck belonging to the garment back

S = 30 % of N - 7% of C + s -- the number of stitches at the neck belonging to the sleeve

F = B + f -- the number of stitches at the neck belonging to the garment front

For a simple crew neck, b = s = 0 or 1, and f = 8 or 10.

For a wider neck, change 30% to 35% or 40%. For a deeper neck, add a multiple of 4 to f.

However, to adjust for the ribbing (because I like symmetry): For k1p1 ribbing, choose B, S, and usually F = 1 mod 2. (I.e., when divided by 2, the remainder is 1)

For k2p2 ribbing, choose B, S, and usually F = 2 mod 4.

For k3p2 ribbing, choose S = 2 mod 5 and B and usually F = 3 mod 5, or vice versa.

To take k2p2 ribbing to a k6p2 garment pattern, choose S = 2 mod 8 and B and usually F = 6 mod 8. -- For the ribbed (k6p2) sweater in the last post, C = 160, N = 56, S =10 = 2 mod 8, and B = F = 30 = 6 mod 8.

Ribbed sweater with turtleneck option

2005-04-11T05:55:00.000-07:00

This sweater is fully reversible (front to back or inside out). Also because the cuff has the same number of stitches as the sleeve, the cuff can be worn down over the hand for warmth or rolled up once or twice.

This pattern is knitted in the round from the top down. Directions are for worsted (4-ply) yarn and size 7 needles (gauge: 4 st/inch, 6 rows/inch). Changes for double-knit (2-ply) yarn are in brackets. (size 5 needles, gauge: 5.5 st/inch, 7.5 rows/inch) This gives a sweater for a 14" neck and 38-40" around. For the turtleneck option, start with one size larger needles than the rest of the pattern, if desired. The raglan seam is k2p2k2 with the purl stitches belonging to the sleeve. (The picture is worked with no change of needle and 30 rows of ribbing.)

Neck ribbing: Using a 16" or 24" circular needle, cast on 80 [96] stitches, using chain cast on. Join by working patt into the first stitches cast on, starting with p2. Make sure the ribbing is not twisted. Work patt (p2 k2) around for 9-15 [11-18] rounds, or, for the turtleneck, for 30-45 [35-55] rows, starting with one size larger needles, if desired, and switching to the pattern needles halfway through. On last round, put markers before 1st [1st], after 10th [10th], after 40th [48th], and after 50th [58th] stitch. Stop 2 stitches before the first marker

Then, to establish the garment pattern: k2, (1st marker), p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, (2nd marker), k2, p2, *k6, p2* 3 [4] times, k2, (3rd marker), p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, (4th marker), k2, p2, *k6, p2* 3 [4] times

Upper garment. Each round for the upper body ends 2 stitches before the first marker. For "inc1" use invisible lifted increase (http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit4a.htm) or any other increase. The pattern is k6p2.

R1: inc1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, inc1, patt, inc1, k2 p2, (marker), k2, inc1, patt, inc1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, inc1, patt, inc1, k2, p2, (marker), k2, inc1, patt

R2: k2, (marker), p2, k2, patt, k2 p2, (marker), k2, patt, k2, (marker), p2, k2, patt, k2, p2, (marker), k2, patt

Alternate R1 and R2 (ending w R2) for a total of 28 [48] rounds -- until there are 58 [86] st between the markers on the back (and also front) – and 38 [58] st on each sleeve.

Do R1, R2, R2, R2 four times ? for a total of 44 [64] upper garment rounds. There are now 66 [94] st on the back (and front) and 46 [66] on each sleeve.

Do R2 until the upper body is long enough to reach 2" below the underarm. (Underarm seam should lie 2" below the actual underarm.) Then (to prepare for the sleeves):

k2, (marker), p2tog, k2, patt, k2, p2tog, (marker), k2, patt, k2, (marker), p2tog, k2, patt, k2, p2tog, (marker), k2, patt

Lower garment: k2 to reach the first marker. Slip the stitches between the first and second markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Using single cast on, cast on 14 [18] stitches. Work patt (k6p2) across the back to next marker, ending with k2. Slip the stitches between the third and fourth markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Cast on 14 [18] stitches. Work patt (k6p2) across the front to marker, ending with k2. The last 6 stitches worked are p2k4 [k2p2k2].

Work patt (k6p2), starting w k2, p2, k6 [k4, p2, k6], until garment is 2" shy of desired length. Do not switch to a smaller needle.

Work 1 row of (k2, k2tog, k2, p2). Then work (k2, p1, k2, p2) for 14 [18] rounds. Bind off.

Sleeves: (There are 44 [64] stitches in scrap.) To start the sleeve: With the garment right side out, identify the 14 [18] stitches that were cast on at the bottom of the sleeve opening. (Using a crochet hook,) pull yarn from the nearest scrap stitch through the top of the right-most of these stitches and then place the stitch back in scrap. Do the same for the left-most stitch. Slide a double-pointed needle --or a 16" circular needle -- into the garment to the right of the sleeve opening (to keep the needle from slipping). Pull yarn through the tops of the 12 [16] remaining underarm stitches and slide onto the needle (making sure that the long end of the yarn is behind the needle). (Pull the yarn from back to front through the top of knit stitches, and from front to back for purl stitches.) (There are now 12 [16] stitches on the needle and 44 [64] stitches in scrap.)

Work the k6p2 pattern around, starting with k1, p2 [k2, p2]. There are 56 [80] st on sleeve.

Work k6p2 around until sleeve reaches wrist. For a tighter sleeve, decrease 1 st every 10 rows 8 times. (At the end of these decreases there would be 48 [72] st on sleeve.)

Then k2p2k2p2 for 14 [18] rounds. Bind off.

Work the other sleeve the same way. Weave in all loose ends, and the garment is complete.

knit skirt

2004-09-12T14:03:00.000-07:00

Finally finished the skirt. It looks nice, but I probably won't wear it around town. I don't want to stand out.
For finishing the hem, I decided against doing the garter stitch and the picot finishing. The checkerboard pattern meant that it wouldn't curl (and so it didn't need the garter stitches)-- and picots aren't my style. So I just finished it by a knit cast off on the knit stitches and a purl one on the purl stitches.

knit skirt

2004-09-09T09:38:00.000-07:00

Decided that I didn't like eyelets in a skirt. So decided to make a checkerboard pattern instead for the bottom of the skirt with each square in the checkerboard 4 stitches by 6 rows. To my eye, it looks a lot nicer.
Also, realized that the skirt I'm making is a 4-panel skirt -- with increases taken where the panels meet. On increase rows, if there is no stitch between panels, add a stitch between the panels. If there is a stitch between panels, knit or purl in front and back of that stitch (and divide the two stitches among the adjacent panels). -- I also centered the checkerboard pattern on each of the 4 panels.

knit skirt

2004-09-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

I decided I didn't like the waistband or the fit for the skirt. So I started over.

First, to make the waist more substantial: CO a multiple of 4 stitches. Do 6 rnds of *k2,p2*, 1 rnd of p, 2 rnds of *p2,k2*, 1 rnd of *p2tog, yo, k2tog, yo*, 3 rnds of *p2,k2*. Then pick up a loop from each of the CO stitches onto a spare circular needle and ktog 1 st from original needle with 1 loop from spare needle. Finally 1 rnd of p. (There are the same number of stitches on the needle as were originally cast on..) I'm also going to use a knitted cord instead of a crocheted one in the waistband.

Next, to make it roomier (since I'm short). Increase by 8 st evenly around the next rnd -- (All of the top half of the skirt is knit.) Then every 6th row instead of every 7th row make 4 increases. So as not to have all the increases on the sides, I divided the skirt into fourths (with markers to mark the fourths.) On the 6th and 12th rnds, make increases right after the first marker, right before the second, right after the third, and right before the last. On the 18th and 24th rnds, make increases after the 1st st after the first marker, before the 1st st before the second, after the 1st st after the third, and before the 1st st before the last. On the 30th and 36th, after or before the 2nd st, etc.

continued here
continued from here

2004-08-25T02:28:00.000-07:00

I'm happy that I accidentally found a knit skirt pattern online (at http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEsummer03/PATTeyelet.html). I've been looking for a skirt pattern off and on for a while. So far it looks nice. I've had to change the numbers because I have a different gauge that the pattern's. I've also decided to knit it in the round -- because I don't like to join seams.

boat neck vs crew

2004-07-30T04:58:00.000-07:00

Because of the heighth of the boat neck neck, there should be more rows in the upper garment in the boat neck than in the crew. Add 1"-2" of rows.

Also because of the k3p2 pattern in the boat neck -- at least with springy yarn and a size 7 needle--, continue adding stitches at the raglan seams until there are 10 stitches extra before starting the lower garment.

Simple Crew-Neck Short-Sleeve Pullover

2004-06-16T03:24:00.000-07:00

Simple Crew-Neck Pullover -- knitted in the round from the top down. Directions are for worsted (4-ply) yarn and size 7 needles (gauge: 4 st/inch, 6 rows/inch). Changes for doubleknit (2-ply) yarn are in brackets. (size 5 needles, gauge: 5.5 st/inch, 7.5 rows/inch) This gives a sweater for a 14" neck and 38-40" around. The raglan seam is 5 stitches wide: k2, p1, k2, with the purl stitch belonging to the sleeve.

Neck ribbing: Using a 16" or 24" circular needle, cast on 72 [92] stitches, using chain cast on. Join by purling into the first stitch cast on. Work patt (k1p1) around for 4 [6] rows. On last row, put markers before 1st [1st], after 9th [11th], after 32nd [42nd], and after 41st [53 th] stitch. Check that the ribbing is not twisted. Then do p1, k7 [k9], p1, (marker), k23 [k31], (marker), p1, k7 [k9], p1, (marker), and k31 [k39]. Then purl around twice. Stop at the first marker.

Upper garment. For "m1" use invisible lifted increase (http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit4a.htm) or any other increase. For "patt", k on right side of garment and p on wrong side.

R1: (right side) (first marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (second marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k2, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R2: (wrong side) p1, (fourth marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (third marker), p2, patt, p2, (second marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R3: (right side) k1, (marker), p1, k2, m1, patt , m1, k2, p1, (marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (marker), k3, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R4: (wrong side) p2, (fourth marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (third marker), p2, patt, p2, (second marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p3, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R5: (right side) k2, (first marker), p1, k2, m1, patt , m1, k2, p1, (second marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k4, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R6: (wrong side) p3, (fourth marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (third marker), p2, patt, p2, (second marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p4, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R7: (right side) k3, (first marker), p1, k2, m1, patt , m1, k2, p1, (second marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k5, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R8: (wrong side) p4, (fourth marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (third marker), p2, patt, p2, (second marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p5, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

(The number of front garment stitches should equal the number of back garment, i.e.: 31 [39].)

Stitches (in the front garment) that have not been picked up are referred to as scrap.

R9: (right side) patt, m1, k2, (first marker), p1, k2, m1, patt , m1, k2, p1, (second marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k2, m1, patt, k one stitch from scrap, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

R10: (wrong side) patt, p2, (fourth marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (third marker), p2, patt, p2, (second marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, patt, p one stitch from scrap, return last stitch to right-hand needle, reverse direction

Repeat R’s 9-10 until there are only 11 [15] stitches left in scrap.

R9a: (right side) patt, m1, k2, (first marker), p1, k2, m1, patt , m1, k2, p1, (second marker), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k2, m1, patt

R9b: (right side) patt, k2, (first marker), p1, k2, patt , k2, p1, (second marker), k2, patt, k2, (third marker), p1, k2, patt, k2, p1, (fourth marker), k2, patt

Then alternate R 9a with R 9b until there are 63 [83] st on the back (and front) and 49 [63] on each sleeve

Then do R9a, R9b, R9b, R9b four times -- for 69 [89] st on the back (and front) and 55 [69] on each sleeve.

Then do R9b until the upper body is long enough to reach 2" below the underarm. (Underarm seam should lie 2" below the actual underarm.)

Lower garment: patt to reach the first marker. Slip the stitches between the first and second markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Using single cast on, cast on 7 [15] stitches. Work patt (on the garment back) to next marker. Slip the stitches between the third and fourth markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Cast on 7 [15] stitches. (There are now 152 [208] stitches on the needle.)

Work patt until garment is 2" shy of desired length. Do not switch to a smaller needle. Starting under left armhole, work ribbing (k1p1) for 14 [18] rounds . Bind off.

Sleeves: (There are 55 [69] stitches in scrap.) To start the sleeve: With the garment right side out, slide a double-pointed needle --or a 16" circular needle -- into the garment to the right of the sleeve opening (to keep the needle from slipping). Identify the 7-[15] stitches that were cast on at the bottom of the sleeve opening. (Using a crochet hook,) pull yarn from the nearest scrap stitch through the top of the right most of these stitches and then place the stitch back in scrap. Do the same for the left-most stitch. Pull yarn through the tops of the next 5[13] stitches and slide onto the needle (making sure that the long end of the yarn is behind the needle). (Pull the yarn from back to front through the top of knit stitches, and from front to back for purl stitches.) (There are now 5 [13] stitches on the needle and 53 [67] stitches in scrap.)

Then work patt from the stitches in scrap.

Work patt around for 6 [8] rounds, stopping at the center bottom of the sleeve and decreasing 2 stitches every 3rd round. Work ribbing (k1p1) for 10 [14] rounds. Bind off.

Work the other sleeve the same way. Weave in all loose ends, and the garment is complete.

Misc

2004-05-28T05:51:00.000-07:00

Misc: Since I don't have any 16"-long circular needles, I use a pair of 29"-long needles to do necklines, etc. I'll do one round with one needle and the next with the other, etc. It works surprisingly well -- much better than double-pointed needles. Plus when I'm half-way done with a round, I can try the garment on without fear of losing stitches.

Short-sleeve boat-neck raglan pullover

2004-05-27T15:09:00.000-07:00

This pattern was inspired by http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring03/PATTbob.html. The biggest difference is that the pattern is knitted in the round from the top down. Directions are for worsted (4-ply) yarn and size 7 needles (gauge: 4 st/inch, 6 rows/inch). Changes for doubleknit (2-ply) yarn are in brackets. (size 5 needles, gauge: 5.5 st/inch, 7.5 rows/inch) This gives a sweater for a 14" neck and 40" around.

Neck ribbing: Using a 16" or 24" circular needle, cast on 80 [100] stitches, using chain cast on. Join by working patt into the first 5 stitches cast on. Work patt (k3p2) around for 6 [8] rows. On last row, put markers before 1st [1st], after 8th [13th], after 40th [50th], and after 48th [63rd] stitch. Stop at the fifth stitch before the first marker. Check that the ribbing is not twisted and that there are 80 [100] stitches.

Upper garment. Each round for the upper body ends at the raglan seam stitches just before the first marker. For "m1" use invisible lifted increase (http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit4a.htm) or any other increase.

R1: m1, k2, p2, (marker separating front and left sleeve), k2, m1, patt(k3p2), m1, k2, (marker separating left sleeve and back), p2, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p2, (marker separating back and right sleeve), k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, (marker separating right sleeve and front), p2, k2, m1, patt

R2: k3, p2, (marker), k3, patt, k3, (marker), p2, k3, patt, k3, p2, (marker), k3, patt, k3, (marker), p2, k3, patt

Alternate R1 and R2 (ending w R2) until there are 64 [89] st between the markers on the back (and also front). There will be 40 [65] st on each sleeve. Further, around each marker, there will be k4, p2, k4.

Then do R1, R2, R2, R2 twice -- for 68 [93] st on the back (and front) and 44 [69] on each sleeve.

Then do * m1, k2, p2, (marker), k2, p1, patt, p1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p2, (marker), k2, p1, patt, p1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt * followed by 3 rounds of R2 for 70 [95] st on the back (and front) and 44 [69] on each sleeve.

Then * m1, k2, p2, (marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt, m1,k2, p2, (marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt followed by 3 rounds of R2 for 72 [97] st on the back (and front) and 44 [69] on each sleeve.

Then do R2 until the upper body is long enough to reach 2" below the underarm. (Underarm seam should lie 2" below the actual underam.)

Lower garment: k2, p2 to reach the first marker. Slip the stitches between the first and second markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Using single cast on, cast on 8 [13] stitches. Purl into next 2 stitches on needle (the first 2 stitches of the back). Work patt (k3p2) to next marker. Slip the stitches between the third and fourth markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Cast on 8 [13] stitches. Purl into next 2 stitches on needle. (There are now 160 [210] stitches on the needle.) Work patt (k3p2) to marker.

Work patt (k3p2) for 14 [18] rounds, stopping under left underam seam. Then k in every stitch until garment is 2" shy of desired length. (For a more form-fitting garment, work patt throughout garment.) Do not switch to a smaller needle. Work patt (k3p2) for 14 [18] rounds . Bind off.

Sleeves: (There are 44 [69] stitches in scrap.) To start the sleeve: With the garment right-side out, slide a double-pointed needle --or a 16" circular needle -- into the garment to the right of the sleeve opening (to keep the needle from slipping). Identify the 8 [13] stitches that were cast on at the bottom of the sleeve opening. (Using a crochet hook,) pull yarn from the nearest scrap stitch through the top of the right-most of these stitches and then place the stitch back in scrap. Do the same for the left-most stitch. Pull yarn through the tops of the next 6 [11] stitches and slide onto the needle (making sure that the long end of the yarn is behind the needle). (Pull the yarn from back to front through the top of knit stitches, and from front to back for purl stitches.) (There are now 6 [11] stitches on the needle and 44 [69] stitches in scrap.)

Then k1, p2, k3, p2 from the stitches in scrap. Work the k3p2 pattern around until there are no stitches in scrap.

Work k3p2 around for 14 [18] rounds. k3p2 to get to the center bottom of the sleeve. Bind off.

Work the other sleeve the same way. Weave in all loose ends, and the garment is complete.

2004-05-26T04:40:00.000-07:00

I'm about ready to change the directions for the boatneck pullover. I don't like the way the neck is divided in what I have already.
Of course, the directions as stand work perfectly well. But I always like to change things.
I commented to my daughter than when we cook together, food always turns out better. She said that was because I almost always change recipes as I cook unless she's there to stop me.

Short-sleeve boat-neck raglan pullover - 4

2004-04-28T03:07:00.000-07:00

Sleeves: (There are 54 [74] stitches in scrap.)

To start the sleeve: With the garment right-side out, slide a double-pointed needle --or a 16" circular needle -- into the garment to the right of the sleeve opening (to keep the needle from slipping). Identify the 8 [18] stitches that were cast at the bottom of the sleeve opening. (Using a crochet hook,) pull yarn from the nearest scrap stitch through the top of the right-most of these stitches and then place the stitch back in scrap. Do the same for the left-most stitch. Pull yarn through the tops of the next 6 [16] stitches and slide onto the needle (making sure that the long end of the yarn is behind the needle). (Pull the yarn from back to front through the top of knit stitches, and from front to back for purl stitches.) (There are now 6 [16] stitches on the needle and 54 [74] stitches in scrap.)

Then k1, p2, k3, p2 from the stitches in scrap. Work the k3p2 pattern around until there are no stitches in scrap.

Work k3p2 around for 14 [18] rounds. k3p2 to get to the center bottom of the sleeve. Bind off.

Work the other sleeve the same way. Weave in all loose ends, and the garment is complete.

Short-sleeve boat-neck raglan pullover - 3

2004-04-28T02:43:00.000-07:00

Lower garment: k2, p2 to reach the first marker. Slip the stitches between the first and second markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Cast on 5 [10] stitches, place marker, cast on 3 [8] more stitches. Purl into next 2 stitches on needle (the first 2 stitches of the back). Work patt (k3p2) to next marker. Slip the stitches between the third and fourth markers (sleeve) onto a spare circular needle or some scrap yarn. Cast on 8 [18] stitches. Purl into next 2 stitches on needle. (There are now 160 [210] stitches on the needle.) Work patt (k3p2) to marker.

Work patt (k3p2) for 14 [18] rounds. Then k in every stitch until garment is 2" shy of desired length. (Do not switch to a smaller needle.) Work patt (k3p2) for 14 [18] rounds . Bind off.

Short-sleeve boat-neck raglan sweater - 2

2004-04-22T06:35:00.000-07:00

Upper garment

Each round for the upper body ends at the fifth stitch before the first marker.

For "m1" use invisible lifted increase (http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit4a.htm) or any other increase.

R2: k2, p2, (marker), k2, patt, k2, (marker), p2, k2, patt, k2, p2, (marker), k2, patt, k2, (marker), p2, k2, patt

Alternate R1 and R2 (ending w R2) until there are 64 [86] st between the markers on the back (and also front). There will be 50 [72] st on each sleeve.

(For k2, patt, k2, I think it's looks better to always start and end the patt with a knit stitch even if it means that sometimes there will be a k6.)

Then do R1, R2, R2, R2 twice -- for 68 [88] st on the back (and front) and 54 [74] on each sleeve.

Then do * m1, k2, p2, (marker), k2, p1, patt, p1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p2, (marker), k2, p1, patt, p1, k2, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt * followed by 3 rounds of R2 for 70 [90] st on the back (and front) and 54 [74] on each sleeve.

Then * m1, k2, p2, (marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt, m1, k2, p2, (marker), k1, p2, patt, p2, k1, (marker), p2, k2, m1, patt followed by 3 rounds of R2 for 72 [92] st on the back (and front) and 54 [74] on each sleeve.

Then do R2 until the upper body is long enough to reach 2" below the underarm. (Underarm seam should lie 2" below the actual underam.)

Short-sleeve boat-neck raglan sweater - 1

2004-04-21T16:26:00.000-07:00

This pattern was inspired by http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring03/PATTbob.html. The big difference is that the pattern is knitted in the round from the top down. Two size 7 circular needles (or different lengths) and 12 oz of worsted weight yarn are used. A set of size 7 double pointed needles (or a 16" long size 7 circular needle) and a crochet hook (optional) will also be needed. (gauge: 4 st/inch, 6 rows/inch)

Changes for doubleknit (2-ply) yarn are in brackets. (size 5 needles, gauge: 5.5 st/inch, 7.5 rows/inch)

Neck ribbing: Using a 16" or 24" circular needle, cast on 100 [100] stitches, using chain cast on. Join. Work patt (k3p2) around for 4 [6] rows. On last row, put markers before 1st, after 18th, after 50th, and after 68th stitch. Stop at the fifth stitch before the first marker. Check that the ribbing is not twisted and that there are 100 [100] stitches.

Increases

2004-04-21T06:11:00.000-07:00

A good website for how to do increases, among other things, is:

http://www.wonderful-things.com/newknit4a.htm

test

2004-04-21T03:09:00.000-07:00

I'm just adding this entry to see how it works. I'll try to add some real entries later. I've never created a web page/journal before.