Episode 38: WWYD

Episode 38: WWYD (45:30)

A Call for Advice

• The Tilted Duster is done!
• Berroco Peruvia
• Browncoats
• Lamb's Pride Bulky
• Collar troubles- Any ideas out there?

Hat and scarf patterns- for free (mostly)!

• Cap Karma (smariek)--she has both hats and scarves
• Brooklyntweed's cap karma
• Knightsbridge
• Belle beret
• Just Like a Peasant Cap (pdf)
• Orata's version
• Sheep and Wool Hat
• Frivol Hat
• Coronet
• Argosy
• Reversible Cabled Brioche Stitch Scarf
• Rainy Day Scarf
• Wavy
• Hello Yarn (Besotted & Irish Hiking)
• IK Scarf Supplement & Sweet Somethings (page down)
• KP Scarf patterns
• Drops accessories (is this the new Berocco?)
• Knitting New Scarves by Lynne Barr
• Grumperina's drifting pleats
• Scarf Style- you have this book, right?

                  

Music
Dig Me Out: Sleater Kinney
Melody of Certain Three: Blonde Redhead
High Beam: Continental

Comments

[Leslie]

enjoyed the latest episode! fisrt of all, nicole, you're right, "rhoda" rocks. (the MTM show is better, i think, but it's still great.) i totally got what you were saying when you were describing that hat!!! also, jenny, how are the fiber trends felted clogs? i bought that pattern months ago but haven't dived in yet. does it go fast? thanks again for a great episode!

[orata]

thanks for the nice words about my hat!

I thought I was the only one bothered by the black pearl ben-wa scarf!

[Ellen]

This last episode was one of your very best. I enjoy them all and look forward to listening every week but the most recent one really has great information and links. I agree - Scarf Style is a 'must have.' I just finished Here and There and about to make it again in a noro yarn for my daughter. I hope you keep up with the podcast - definitely one of the best out there! Thanks again!

[Deborah]

Until I started knitting I avoided sweaters that needed to be handwashed like the plague because I just didn't know how to do it. One of the first books I read on blocking was Maggie Righetti's "Knitting in Plain English". She has an excellent chapter on how to wash and block a sweater with great tips - such as positioning a fan to blow over it (I now dry mine in a room with a ceiling fan), flipping it over and changing the towel every so often. I was like Doh! You mean I shouldn't just leave my sweaters on the same damp towel in my basement for a week?!

I just got the Knitting New Scarves book from the library. Wow - there are lots of really interesting structural pieces in it! I didn't mind the Black Pearls so much. To me they do look like pearls or beads. I wouldn't wear it myself though, especially after noting the designer's warning that people will want to squeeze the scarf all the time.

[Saralyn]

Thanks for featuring my scarf design. You guys really made my day. BTW, it's really not very fussy to knit, because you only cable once every 12 rows. The rest is pretty mindless once you get into the rhythm.

[Abigail]

Nicole, I think the coronet I knit for my sister-in-law is form the same yarn as yours:
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/abigailvr/coronet

It's also cascade 220!

[Penelope]

Crap. Now I'm obsessed with the "Just Like a Peasant" cap. :)

[Susan]

Hi Jenny and Nicole,
I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy the podcast. I download it and then save it for my morning train commute. Gives me some motivation to get going in the in the morning, knowing I can knit and listen to the two of you talk knitting on my way to work.
I was especially surprised this morning, because you mentioned 'my' rainy day scarf out of one skein of Malabrigo. I had to stop myself from poking my seatmate with a dpn, and tell them my scarf got mentioned on Stash and Burn :)
Aother great free scarf pattern is Falling Water Lace by Bonnie Sennott (she's zinnia on ravelry).
http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~bsennott/Falling%20Water%20Pattern.pdf
I made it out of Reynolds Odyssey in a green color that I absolutely love and it's my new favorite. The pics don't do the yarn or the pattern justice.
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/suzygirl/falling-water

Thanks again!!
Suzy Girl (the knitter fomerly known as cinnamon girl)

[Ruth]

Enjoyed this week's podcast, as usual! I can't make heads or tails of that Barbara Walker thing either -- and I spent quite some time on it, book open on my lap, needles in hand, swearing quietly to myself. . .

The peasant cap is totally Rhoda. I was going to make it for my sister-in-law, but the yarn I have in my stash creates a fabric that's too stiff. I'll have to search out something better.

[Donna B]

I enjoyed your podcast (as always!)

Wool varies from breed to breed in springiness. Some of the springiest are not commonly available in commercial yarns. Also, the way the yarn is spun and plied will affect the elasticity of the yarn.

[Julia]

I'm famous! How cool. It was so fun to be mentioned on the podcast. You made my day, which was pretty crappy before that!

Rhoda is too funny - completely on the mark.

You should never ask for advice, because I'll give it in spades. First, Never, never, never block ribs. It will cause issues with the resilience. Second, definitely go one or two needle sizes on ribbed collars, cuffs and hems. Third, if a collar is loose, you can either rip back and re-knit it using smaller needles, reducing the number of sts, and binding off in k2tog (any combination or all). Alternately, you can weave or knit in a bit of elastic, which I need to do for two of my sweaters - Audrey is insanely stretched at the neck! Rainbow Elastic really is - you can match it to anything. Also, and I know you will hate this advice, but wash and block your swatch to check gauge before you knit. Wool always expands, so your gauge after blocking is probably off. Annoying, but true.

Last -- and this is a really good tip -- put your wet FO's in the washer and run them through the final spin cycle. No water, just spin. It takes a ton of water out and it will not felt your fo's - promise - I do this with all of my wool sweaters, hats, scarves, etc.

Okay, diatribe over. Thanks for mentioning me - it was fun!

[Sharon-UK]

Hi - I block all my component pieces before seaming them together, then I press the seams afterwards using a sleeve board. Never get steam anywhere near ribs and try not to stretch the ribs when blocking. I use blocking wires on all straight edges so only a few pins are needed and you get a much neater edge. It's much easier to seam a flat blocked edge. I block one piece at a time using 1/3 of an old door, padded with an old wool blanket doubled, and covered with a gridded canvas cover - it takes pins easily and I can move it around out of the way because it is light, and the grid helps with straight edges / right angles. I use safety pins as temporary closures when trying to determine correct positions for buttons. Best wishes, Sharon-UK

[Anna]

If you wanted a stockinette-look scarf, you could just do a 1x1 rib and not block it. I'm doing that with Noro Kureyon right now, and it's looking great!

Keep up the fun podcast.

[Elysbeth]

Another great episode. Since y'all have a Bond don't forget about casting on 25 stitches, work about 6 feet of stockinette, and then work seed stitch all the way around it for about 6 rows. Fast, easy, fits smoothly down the front of a man's jacket, and you feel no guilt over a quick knit. I did this recently and The Adored One loves it.

[Rachel]

I have been pondering the ribbing resiliency issue all week long (the things you think about while you Christmas knit in to the wee hours). I think going down more than 2 needles sizes for the ribbing might eliminate the extra room stitches have to spread. Maybe. I can't really test this theory until January, but it seems like just going down 1 size just isn't enough to compensate for the way ribbing behaves when blocked.

[Stacey]

Hats! For some reason, I really want to knit a tam for myself. I think it's just a poofier beret? And you block it with a dinner plate or something.

[Midgeling]

Wow, thanks for all the great patern links. I hadn't seen many of those!

[Susan]

Another great podcast! I love the links to all those scarves - many I hadn't seen before. I cracked up at the mention of the house on 280. I pass it all the time and thought you two might enjoy this article: http://www.thewavemag.com/pagegen.php?articleid=24784&pagename=article

[T2]

Thanks for introducing me to the Drops website! I can't decide what to make 1st.

Which pattern is used in the picture with this podcast? I know I've seen it somewhere and meant to go back to it, but can't remember where. Thank you

[Sally Villarreal]

So where are the pics of Nicole's tilted duster?

Also, do you think besotted can be a man's scarf?