December 31, 2011

Yarn: Cascade 220 100% wool, in Christmas Heather

Needle: 5 mm / 8 US

Gauge: 4.5 stitches and 5 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Allover Cross Stitch

Source: BW1, p. 130.

Comments:  Here it is, the last official* swatch of 2011.  I did a quick count, and this makes 257 swatches, and somewhere around 6000 yards knit up!  I am very pleased that I managed to make it through the whole year without giving this up, although I'm not sure how I feel about having missed out some 99 days of swatches!  But I can assure you, I will not be continuing knitting daily swatches in 2012.  What I will do, however, is sew all of these 257 swatches into a giant blanket, a photo of which will eventually be posted on this blog.  That's where that little asterisk beside "official" comes in - I have a feeling that I may need to knit some extra 'filler' swatches to make this blanket a proper square.  At one point, I had intended to start laying it out before the end of the year, so that the last month of swatches could be specially sized to fit in those empty spaces... but I only got as far as deciding to start knitting a bunch of teeny swatches, in anticipation of the holes.  So keep an eye out - there may be a few more swatches posted on here in weeks to come!


But for now, Happy New Year and Happy Swatching!  :)

December 27, 2011

Yarn:  DROPS Karisma 100% Superwash DK Wool in Black

Needles: 4 mm / 6 US

Gauge: 4.5 stitches and 6 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Coral Knot Stitch

Source: BW1, p. 130.

Comments: This one might look better on a lighter yarn - at least then you would get a better feel for the texture.  I tried to remove the bias while blocking this, but I'm not sure how successful it was.  Hopefully it won't get all warped once I sew it into the swatch blanket.

December 23, 2011

Yarn: Elann Peruvian Baby Cashmere, 60% Alpaca/30% Merino/10% Cashmere 4-ply, in Peacock

Needles: 3.5 mm / 5 US

Gauge: 6 stitches and 10 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Diamond Patchwork

Source: St5, p. 84-85 (stitch #89)

Comments: To me, this stitch looks like a bunch of little menorahs, albeit ones with only 5 candles. Seemed appropriate, given that I knit this in the middle of Hanukkah.

December 3, 2011

Yarn: King Cole Merino Blend DK, 100% superwash merino wool, in Raspberry

Needle: 4 mm / US 6

Gauge: 5 stitches and 6 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Bed of Roses

Source: St5, p. 27 (stitch #32)

Comments: The winter theme lost out to the colour of the yarn on this one.  Oops.  :)  This is a nice bulky mesh - I think it could work well in place of a trinity stitch in an Aran sweater.  Maybe not in this colour, but that's just a design issue.

December 2, 2011

Yarn: Sandnes Garn Lanett, 100% 4-ply Superwash Merino Wool, in White

Needle: 3.5 mm / US 5

Gauge: 9 stitches and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Footprints in the Snow

Source: St5, p. 78 (stitch #85)

Comments: I don't see the 'footprints' in this pattern.  If anything, it reminds me more of the Bare Branches pattern, but with a chevron effect included.  This yarn is really nice - its pretty fine, but the softness really makes up for that.  I wonder how long it would take to knit myself a 4-ply sweater?

December 1, 2011

Yarn: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, 100% worsted weight wool in Chocolate

Needle: 4.5 mm / US 7

Gauge: 4.5 stitches and 4 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Gingerbread Crumbs

Source: St5, p. 16 (stitch #12)

Comments: Given that it's December, I thought I'd try to choose this month's swatch stitches according to their wintery and/or Christmas-y names - so of course we start with a gingerbready stitch, knit in a gingerbread-brown yarn.  You'll soon see how long that lasted.  ;)

November 16, 2011

Yarn: Green 4-ply yarn, in some kind of wool/acrylic mix. 

Needle: 3.5 mm / US 4 (I think - I can't really remember!)

Gauge: 6 stitches and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Vine and Leaf

Source: St5, p. 77 (motif #82)

Comments: There are a lot of patterns like this - the arched leaf shape curving towards a centre line.  I think this is one I haven't knit before, although with the many possible names that each pattern can have (especially when switching between stitch dictionaries), its really hard to tell!

October 3, 2011

Yarn: King Cole Merino Blend DK, 100% Superwash Wool, in Copper

Needles: 4 mm / 6 US

Gauge: 4.5 stitches and 6 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Faggoting and Beehive Lace Pattern

Source: BW1, p. 188.

Comments: Betcha thought I'd forgotten to keep swatching, eh?  I've been doing the knitting, its just the blocking and posting that takes me ages!  This one is an interesting mix of vertical faggoting stitch ladders (that name seems so non-PC!) and what is apparently a German Beehive stitch.  I suppose you could do a whole sweater or wrap in this, but it would take you ages... plus its really hard to remember which row you're on as you go along (the rows go A,B,C,B, and I kept forgetting if I were on the first or the second B row!).

October 1, 2011

Yarn: King Cole Merino Blend DK - 100% Superwash Wool, in Wildrose

Needles: 4 mm / 6 US

Gauge: 4.5 stitches and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Crystal and Pearl

Source: BW2, p. 266.

Comments:  I got lazy and did only one repeat of today's pattern... which was bad, because you can't really see it all that well in this photo.  I blame the fact that we're back to autumn weather, which brings grey skies and really poor lighting conditions for indoor photography that doesn't use a flash.  Oh well... these are supposed to be hourglass shapes, made out of rows of eyelets - look closely, and you'll see what I mean.  :)

September 24, 2011

Yarn: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, 100% worsted weight wool in Chocolate
 
Needles: 4 mm / US 6

Gauge: 4 stitches x 6 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Floral Mesh 

Source: BW4, p. 218.

Comments:  This is a pretty simple lace pattern - easy chart to follow, doesn't require much attention.  Shame about the yarn though - classic KnitPicks yarn problem - it looses shape, colour, and sproingy-ness after to much use.

September 17, 2011

Yarn: Patons Beehive Shetland Chunky, 75% Acrylic/25% Wool, in Dark Teal  

Needles: 5 mm / US 9

Gauge: 3.5 sts and 4.25 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Checkered Acre

Source: BW1, p. 192.

Comments: Normally, I'm really not a fan of yarns with as much acrylic in them as this one, but somehow, I can't not like this Shetland Chunky yarn.  Ages ago I knit a sweater for my brother using this (in dark grey, not this colour), and as far as I know he still has it and its in decent shape, considering.  To be fair, I did steam swatch a little more than is probably good for the acrylic, but look how nicely it sits now!  :)

September 3, 2011

Yarn: Pingouin France +, 50% Acrylic/50% Wool (DK) in Tweedy Blue

Needles: 4 mm / US 6

Gauge: 5 sts and 7 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Sail Away, Ladies (14-stitch repeat)

Source: St5, p.60-61.

Comments: The book offers 4 versions of this pattern, which differ only in the number of stitches in each repeat - you can do 10+1, 14+1, 16+1, or 22+1.  I went for one that was somewhere in the middle, but not the 16 one, because that's the one in their sample photo.  :)  Anyway, the name of this one seemed appropriate somehow...  ;)

August 23, 2011

Yarn: Elann Peruvian Baby Silk - 80% Alpaca/20% Silk, in Parchment

Needles: 3.5mm / 4 US

Gauge: roughly 5 stitches and 5 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Star Rib Mesh

Source: BW1, p. 196.

Comments: I don't think I've done enough open-work swatches, so I decided to try this one.  The decreases are made using the slip 2, k1, p2sso, method which apparently keeps the ribs very vertical - Ms. Walker says that if you slip 1, k2tog, psso, you'll end up with a crooked vertical line.

August 20, 2011

Yarn: White 4-ply yarn, in some kind of wool/acrylic mix.

Needles: 3.5 mm / 5 US

Gauge: 5 stitches and 7 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Frost Flowers

Source: BW1, p. 204.

Comments: I think I should have made this swatch bigger, to encompass more repeats of the pattern - I resisted because its a 32 stitch repeat, and I didn't want to make a ginormous swatch.  I just think that the 'flower' aspect of the swatch might be more clear with extra repeats, both vertically, and horizontally.   Maybe I'll use this in a lacy blanket someday, and then the pattern will be more obvious.

August 19, 2011

Yarn: Elann Peruvian Baby Cashmere, 60% Alpaca/30% Merino/10% Cashmere 4-ply, in Peacock

Needles: 3.5 mm / 5 US

Gauge: 5 stitches and 7 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Drooping Elm Leaf

Source: BW1, p. 217.

Comments: I think this is one of those lace patterns that would look better in a thicker yarn, knit on slightly too small needles.  The pattern is pretty clear in this photo, but in real life, its a little hard to make out the shapes of the leaves - and I think that would be corrected by knitting it in a thicker yarn.  This would make a nice winter wrap, I think - maybe in green, and then you could embroider little berries on it in places...

August 18, 2011

Yarn: Elann Peruvian Baby Cashmere, 60% Alpaca/30% Merino/10% Cashmere 4-ply, in Rose Heather

Needles: 3.5 mm / 5 US

Gauge: 5.5 stitches and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Mrs. Montague's Pattern

Source: BW1, p. 211.

Comments: I like the story behind this pattern: "Mrs. Montague was a Lady of the Chamber to Queen Elizabeth I of England.  She made stockings for the Queen in this pattern, said to have been copied from a French design.  A pair of these stockings still exists today in the museum at Hatfield House." (BW1, p. 211).  With a stitch repeat of 16 stitches, you'd have to use pretty thin yarn to make stockings out of this yarn - you'd need either 65 or 81 stitches to get a full repeat around, both of which could make some pretty big socks in 4-ply yarn!

August 13, 2011

Yarn: Noro Kureyon Sock, 70% Wool/30% Nylon, in colourway S92

Needles: 3.25 mm / US 3

Gauge: 5.5 stitches x 12 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Twin Leaf Lace

Source: BW1, p. 210.

Comments: Just to be clear, the drastic colour changes in this swatch are all part of this yarn - gotta love Noro for their crazy ranges of colour! :)  This lace was pretty easy to work, but I'm not sure I like it as much as I thought I would.  Maybe if it was done in a single repeat it might look better?  I think it somehow needs to be taller, but I'm not sure how to do that without making it wider at the same time.

August 3, 2011

Yarn: Regia Sock Yarn

Needles: 4mm / 6 US

Gauge:  6 stitches and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Crystal Chandelier

Source: LionBrand.com

Comments: Are you noticing a trend with my constant use of 4 and/or 5mm needles?  These needles pretty much live in my knitting bag, and are therefore always on hand when starting a new swatch.  I got this yarn unlabeled too, although the previous owner assured me its Regia yarn, albeit a very scratchy version!

July 11, 2011

Yarn: White 4-ply yarn, in some kind of wool/acrylic mix.

Needles: 3.5mm / 4 US (plus a 4.5mm needle for casting off)

Gauge: 5 sts and 6 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Wineglass Lace

Source: BW2, p. 313.

Comments:  This lacy little pattern practically doubles in width after blocking - as you can see, my cast-off on a 4.5mm needle was not loose enough to allow for proper stretching of the fabric.  In the BW book, single repeats of this are used as an edge for a different lace panel I think it may actually look better that way.  You'd just have to be really careful about measuring gauge on this when you went to work it into a project.

July 10, 2011

Yarn: Green 4-ply yarn, in some kind of wool/acrylic mix.

Needles: 3.5mm / 4 US

Gauge: 5.5 sts and 8 rows per inch

Stitch Pattern: Snowflake Eyelet

Source: BW2, p. 248.

Comments:  This is a pretty little lacy fabric - quick and easy to work, and recommended for beginner knitters.  It will definitely help you perfect yarn overs, if nothing else.  :)