19/1/2016 0 Comments The SwatchTabKnitting a swatch and checking your gauge....We all know that knitting a swatch is an essential part of knitting a project where size is critical.
A few years ago I got fed up with trying to get my measuring tape straight and counting the stitches. Having access to acrylic fabrication equipment and material through our sister company, Acrylicraft Ltd, I decided to make myself a useful acrylic tool. I now have several of these dotted around the house, just an arm's length away from my knitting. These are now available here in our shop in 7 different colours.
0 Comments
16/1/2016 0 Comments 2016 colour of the yearPantone reveals its first two-tone colour of the year with Rose Quartz and Serenity.
We are busy working on replicating these colours in our linen yarn. This will soon be available as a 100g linen yarn blank (2-tone) and each colour will be available separately in our 100g yarn skeins. 2/1/2016 0 Comments Hand-dyed linen gradient yarn28/12/2015 0 Comments Linen wash-cloths in gradient yarn.I have just finished making a few more gifts.
I dyed some sport weight linen blanks from pink to blue in a rather steep gradient. I would have preferred a more gradual shift of colour, but that will be next time. These were knitted (55 stitches 70 rows with 3.75mm needles) and then finished off with a round of single crochet to neaten off the edges. 28/12/2015 0 Comments Plump little robins.A trio of rather oddly-shaped robins that I crocheted out of linen DK.
Still practising my crochet techniques and struggled with the tension. The result wasn't too bad though. 28/12/2015 0 Comments Looking round....?How do you get a crocheted ball to look perfectly round?
Here is my latest attempt. It is more regular in shape than the robins I made recently. The lucky recipient isn't really bothered about its imperfections as he'll be too busy kicking it around. Fortunately it is made out of sturdy linen so it should last quite a while. 30% off our undyed linen 100g hanks........... Stock up for Spring.10/12/2015 0 Comments Hanks + blanksNew... Pre-knitted undyed linen blanks, ready for dyeing.Now available at the introductory price of £10.92,As you probably know, we already supply 100g hanks of undyed pure linen yarn in our DK weight (Soft White) and in our 4-ply/sport weight (Soft White).
We are now also producing pre-knitted 100% linen blanks, ready for you to dye, or to use as they are, in the Soft White. They come already washed and softened. Click on photo for more information. With the festive season approaching I have been knitting some gifts.
Here is a new scarf in a new colour way that I dyed and knitted for a friend. The colour way is Lagoon, which we now supply in DK or Sport weight 100g yarn hanks as well as the new gradient linen yarn blanks. The scarf is made from 2 x 100g hand-dyed gradient blanks. 4/12/2015 0 Comments Linen yarn: new colour20/11/2015 0 Comments Hand-dyed linen gradient yarnA new edition to the linen gradient yarn collection: Robin's eggAs with the Licorice and LIme colour-way, the blank starts and ends with the same shade, so that if you need to use more than 1 x 100g blank for a project, you won't get a colour break. Here is a scarf I knitted for Mum using 2 of these blanks. The yarn can be found here in our shop. 11/11/2015 0 Comments Linen eyelet cowl - longer versionHere is a longer version of the linen eyelet cowl I blogged about a couple of months ago.
I cast on 201 stitches (pattern repeat of 8 stitches + 1) to increase the length of the finished cowl, making it into an infinity scarf which can be wrapped round twice for a closer fit. The longer version is also a more substantial accessory for those mid-season months. It was made out of 2 x 100g eco-stitch hand-dyed linen in DK weight. The colour is Mulberry, which I dyed up specially for a friend. This version has been added to the free pattern page on the website here As promised in our previous posts, here is our new hand-dyed gradient yarn. It comes in pre-knitted 100g blanks so you can see roughly what effect you will get as it knits/crochets up. It can be wound in to a ball or you can knit/crochet directly from the piece and it unravels.
Each blank weighs around 100g. This colour is called licorice and lime. It starts as a turquoise which runs in to a blue/green and then a lime, before running back in to the blue/green and ending with the turquoise again. Available for sale here in our shop. 2/10/2015 0 Comments Colour gradient linen scarfThis pure linen scarf is an ideal mid-season accessory and will add a splash of colour to any outfit. In my last post I described a new dyeing technique whereby I used a piece of plain linen fabric that had already been knit up before dyeing it, with the aim of achieving clearer visible gradient shifts that could then be replicated once knitted or crocheted. The result was a linen crochet bag which you can see in the blog section "Making progress". Here is an example of the same dyed pre-knitted blanks which I unravelled to knit a colour gradient scarf. The advantage of dyeing a piece of fabric that has already been knit up is that you get a better picture of how the colours on your finished object are going to look. The pre-knitted, hand-dyed blanks will soon be available in our shop. You can just knit/crochet straight from the piece as you unravel the yarn, or you can wind it into a ball if you prefer. Crinkling is really not an issue. The pattern for this scarf is available for all to use. It is on our free pattern page here. It is a simple design and an easy knit, comprising mainly stocking stitch, with a row of eyelets from time to time. The ends are finished with a simple woven stitch. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. 17/9/2015 0 Comments Making progress....A couple of weeks ago I posted about my attempts to take up crochet again. Here is my first finished object in crochet. This project took 200g of eco-stitch DK linen yarn. You can use 2 of our semi-solids or multi-coloured yarn for a variegated effect. However, I produced this bag using a different dyeing technique because I wanted more of a colour block/gradient effect (see 3rd photo) In the left-hand photo above you can see the finished bag with one of the linen hand-dyed blanks from which it was made. I dyed the fabric already knit up so I could see the colour gradients I wanted to achieve. I then unravelled the pre-dyed piece and crocheted with it. These pre-knitted hand-dyed blanks will soon be available in our shop. You simply unravel the end and knit directly from the piece of fabric. Surprisingly, linen does not crinkle as much as wool when it it's knit up and subsequently unravelled. It does crinkle a bit but if you run the yarn through the end of your finger and thumb it smooths out quite easily. Fortunately, you don't have to do this as you knit/crochet with it. The crinkle naturally disappears as you knit/crochet your new project. Crochet bag patternThe pattern is my own invention. I ended up ripping back several times until I reached a satisfactory result. The strap is tapered (yes! I learnt how to increase/decrease!) and I added a tab and button for a bit more security.
If you are interested in obtaining the pattern, please contact me. If I receive enough requests I'll see what I can do about writing it up. 17/9/2015 1 Comment Mystery Knit Along on RavelryI recently took part in a Mystery Knit Along on Ravelry with a project called the Shawl Pin Shawl by Lindsay Lewchuck in the US. This involves being sent the beginning of a pattern along with other participants and following the different stages of the pattern as they are released one by one. All we knew about the knitted garment was that it was a shawl/scarf. At first, the idea of knitting something without seeing a picture of the finished object seemed quite daunting to me, but how wrong I was! The pattern was very well-written and explained and I found myself waiting in anticipation for the subsequent clues. I really enjoyed the whole experience. Here is the final result: The pattern required a sport weight/4-ply yarn so I opted for the eco-stitch sport in the Rose colour way. Here are some different ways of wearing the shawl/scarf, including 2 by Lindsay herself. Images used with permission Copyright © 2015 Knit Eco Chic by Lindsay Lewchuk
5/9/2015 0 Comments Back to basics...OK, this might seem pretty basic to all you crochet experts out there, but this is quite an achievement for me. Although I've been knitting for 30 plus years, I only dabbled with crochet once as a teenager. I produced a pile of random granny squares that were subsequently shoved into a plastic bag and stashed somewhere at Mum and Dad's house. Recently I asked Mum what had happened to them, and she told me they had been donated to a local charity that had sewn them together into a lovely blanket for an old folks' home. So, many, many years later I decided to try my hand at crochet again. After a few abysmal attempts that didn't resemble anything decent, I started to make a little progress. I feel this is the beginning of great things to come....!! I'll be using these practice pieces as face cloths. The crochet produces a slightly denser fabric than knitting. These samples are made from our DK 100% linen.
23/8/2015 0 Comments Pure linen sweaterThis is my latest creation using the DK weight pure linen yarn in Silver and Lagoon. You can find the project details on Ravelry here.
23/7/2015 0 Comments Linen cowl for all seasonsI've just published a new pattern on Ravelry for a new cowl/infinity scarf. The pattern is called Matchstix. It is knit in the round with dual colour stripes and a textured loop stitch feature. It uses one skein of 100% DK linen yarn in Denim and one skein in Lagoon. It can also be worn wrapped round twice for a snugger fit under a jacket for cooler weather. Linen is a thermo-regulator, which means that as well as keeping you cool in the summer, it also keeps you warm in cooler weather. Total circumference 118cm, 20cm wide. For more details on this pattern, please go to our patterns page.
12/7/2015 0 Comments Linen: ideal for light summer topsI have just finished making a light summer top out of our 100% linen 4-ply yarn (Pale Slate) This project took 3 x 100g hanks. Knit on 3.75mm needles for a lighter, more airy stitch, it is closer to sport weight/5-ply yarn in gauge. Linen is quite versatile in hand-knitting in that you can easily change the way your stitches look by changing the needle thickness. You have more scope with gauge than with some other yarns. The appearance of stitches before washing is quite bumpy and irregular, as in this photo of the work in progress. Once washed, the stitches relax and take on a much neater, more regular appearance, as you can see in this close-up below of the same piece. People are sometimes afraid of knitting with a certain fibre because they think it will shrink or stretch. Once linen has relaxed after its first wash, it doesn't shrink or stretch, if looked after properly. However, you do have to bear in mind when knitting a garment that you could gain a little in length and lose a little in width (around 5%) once the fibres have relaxed with their initial wash. The Pale Slate colour way is pale grey with hints of lilac. The plain stitch enhances the flecks of colour. The linen has a lovely drape and although I only knit 2 rows of garter stitch along the bottom edge, it doesn't roll up and the raw neck line doesn't roll either.
You can also see this project on Ravelry. |
eco-stitchWelcome to our blog. Archives
July 2022
Categories |
Information |
Company |
|