Sleeves

In the end, I decided to bite the bullet and finish the Green Chai Cardi. I need to have faith in my skills as a crocheter and assume that it will fit - instead of leaving my options open, then spending Mum's entire next visit frantically trying to get it finished.

Did I mention that I hated the sleeves? I hated the sleeves.

The reason was that they didn't come out even. They weren't badly out of alignment, but they were visibly different. I looked at them for a week, then cracked and ripped them out. Then, while the unravelled wool was soaking in a mix of warm water and wool mix to get the crinkles out, I sat down to see if I could work out a way of setting the sleeves straight into the garment. As you may have guessed from the photo below, yes I could. :)

Green Chai Cardi with crocheted-in sleeves

To provide a foundation for the sleeves, I did a row of double crochet into the broomstick lace (one dc for each chain in the foundation chain in the original sleeve pattern). I made sure that the double crochets were evenly spaced to either side of the seam (8 dc each side and 1 dc on the seam). Then I simply followed the pattern, working into the double crochets.

When the pattern changed from rows to rounds, I worked more double crochets to form a foundation for the round. It was actually easier than following the pattern - I found the whole "row of chain and join with a treble" a bit confusing, it took me a couple of goes to get it each time.

I also adapted an old knitter's trick of doing both the sleeves at once. This is a great tip that I got from my great-aunt, who was still knitting strong into her 90s. Her tip was to cast on both the sleeves at once (using two separate balls of yarn) and to work them at the same time. The idea is that you're unlikely to end up increasing on the right sleeve, then forgetting to increase on the left if you have both the sleeves on the needles at the same time.

Shawl Collar Cardigan - sleeves

This also works well for cardigan fronts - in fact, for pretty much anything where you have two knitted pieces that need to be absolutely identical. (Of course, it's no guarantee that they won't be identically wrong - but that is easier to hide that two uneven sleeves or fronts).

The crochet equivalent is to work a round - put a stitch marker or safety pin into the stitch to stop your work unravelling - take the hook out, then work the same round on the other sleeve. It seems to working quite well - I feel like the sleeves look far more even, and this also saves me from having to scribble notes about any 'fixes' that I've needed to make the pattern work out.

Lady Eleanor stole

While I was waiting for the wool to dry out after I frogged the sleeves, I had some time to spend on the Lady Eleanor Entrelac Stole.

Once I'd worked two tiers, the logic of it suddenly clicked and now I'm happily picking the stole up whenever I've got a spare moment and working a couple of rectangles. The Noro yarn is lovely and warm - very much looking forward to having this in my wardrobe by winter time! The pattern says to work 35 tiers, but I'm hoping I might have the yarn to make it 40. Not because I need a particularly long stole, but just because I'm really enjoying the pattern now that I've mastered it. :)

Stop taking photos and give us back our sofa!!

My next step will be to put together a simple entrelac design and block in at least one class for the winter. I'm thinking of doing something with one of the Jo Sharp tweeds... but more on that in another blog post. For now, I need to open the shop and give the sofa back to its rightful owners (see photo left!).

Planning your projects

Well, here we are again - winter is coming up, and suddenly our shop is full of people planning projects. So, since I haven't finished my next wool report project, I thought now would be a great time to share some tips on how to find the perfect project for winter 2011. The main questions you need to answer are:

How patient are you/how much time do you have?

I had a bad moment a couple of months ago when a lass who'd just purchased a ball of 4ply wool asked how many rows she had to knit to finish a garment. I went through the pattern with her and when she realised she'd need to knit about 100 rows, she nearly passed out in horror! Unfortunately, she'd already started to knit the yarn, or I'd have taken it back and exchanged it. The moral is, always have a good think about how much time (or patience) you have before you select your project!

1. Unlimited (not working or knitting/crochet/tricot is your number one priority - or you are using public transport to travel!) - buy anything. Buy 2, 3 and 4ply yarns, lace patterns, complex intarsia - whatever takes your fancy!
   

   Designers: Try Marie Wallan or Kim Hargreaves (Rowan) - both favour very feminine designs in fine yarns. There are also some good books available from Interweave with very fine, intricate lace patterns (knitted and crocheted).
   

   Yarns: Misti Alpaca 2ply and 4ply have been flying out the door lately - try Rowan 4ply cottons for summer or Kidsilk Haze for a light, warm winter knit.



2. Moderate (knitting is one of several hobbies - need time for work and family!) - stick with 8 (DK) or 10 ply (Aran) projects with the odd chunky weight hat or scarf to give yourself a quick win or for an emergency present. A reasonably fast knitter should be able to finish an 8 or 10 ply garment over winter (I'm an average knitter and crocheter, but I can usually knock over a garment every six months - three if I'm using public transport a lot or involved in a show).
   

   Designers: Jo Sharp has a good range of DK and Aran weight patterns. The Sirdar Eco Wool pattern books have also been popular, and the recent Cleckheaton pattern books have some really nice 8ply patterns that are also quite easy to knit.

   
   

   Yarns: the Jo Sharp Silkroad DK and Aran Tweeds are probably our most popular yarns at this point. Filatura di Crosa's Zara range makes a nice change if you want something with a smoother, less "woolly" finish, and the Sirdar Eco Wool has a lovely range of gentle, natural shades. At a lower price point, we have the Heirloom Merino Magic, which is lovely to knit and has a great colour range.



3. None (you are flat out with other things, or you just cannot handle chipping away at a project for months and months) - chunky weight yarns are your friend. So are big needles and small projects such as hats, neckwarmers, slippers, amigurumi toys (any toys!), shrugs and so forth. Lace patterns with fine yarns can be another winner, but some knitters find these too fiddly. Hint: learn to crochet or tricot. Both these crafts are usually faster than knitting!
   

   Designers: try the Rowan design team again - any of the Big Wool pattern books will be perfect for you! The Garnstudio site is another good resource - look for projects in Polaris, Ice, Eskimo or Igloo (select search groups D, E or F on the search panel).

   
   

   Yarns: Big Wool, Misti Alpaca Chunky.

What is your goal?

We often get knitters and crocheters in here who want to learn a new technique. If you are learning a new technique, please let us know that you are looking for a beginner project! Generally, if someone is starting with a techique, I point them towards Cleckheatons and Patons - both brands have very clear, simple patterns aimed at the beginner. If someone is looking to move on to more challenging patterns, I would suggest that they might want to look at some of the Rowan pattern books, where you can find some very complex colourwork, beaded patterns, tricky lace patterns and cable combinations. Some of the advanced Jo Sharp projects are also good if you are wanting a challenge. Anyone who wants the knitter's equivalent of climbing Everest will find Kaffe Fassett's colourwork patterns in our shop and on the Rowan website (http://www.knitrowan.com/). Good luck! :)

Oh and by the way (shameless self promotion time!) - we offer regular classes in knitting, crochet, tricot and broomstick lace. So we can get you started on your challenge with a class, as well as with wool and patterns...

What are your likes/dislikes?

If we know what you like, we will be able to recommend other, similar yarns and designers. And we won't waste your time by waving chunky weight, undyed wool in your face if we know that you love bright cottons!

Can you help us to help others?

Another quick self promotion moment - please use the Reviews feature if you visit our website (http://www.ccck.com.au/). It is very helpful for others to be able to see comments and feedback from people who have actually worked with the yarns and patterns - whether good or bad. I'm not going to censor the site - however, I will email unfavourable feedback to our suppliers and pass it on to their sales reps!

All the best for your winter projects!

Stash-gym - the weigh-in

I figured that a picture is worth 1,000 words...

Before

**This is a representation only. I have a wide angle lens, but it was not quite wide enough to manage The Stash.***

After

Project creep

Once upon a time, when I first started working in IT&T, I discovered a wonderful phenomenon called 'scope creep'. To explain this using everyday terms, let's pretend that scope creep happens in a hardware shop.

A customer comes in to a hardware shop and asks the shop assistant for a packet of nails. The shop assistant talks to the customer about what they want, shows them a few different packets of nails and helps the customer to make a decision. The shop assistant takes the nails to the till - just as they are about to put the purchase through the till, the customer shouts "Wait!! I'd like to get bigger nails and I also want a hammer please".

No worries! The shop assistant gets the new bag of nails and the hammer... "Wait! I don't actually want any of that - do you have a three piece bathroom setting?".

Scope creep is probably the reason for the myki blowout and for every other IT&T-related disaster in the history of disasters. One of the highlights of my new role as Retail Manager (I thought) was the end of scope creep. Never again, I told myself, would I sign a contract to write a procedures manual and end up being asked to produce three manuals, training materials and a website for the same price. Never again would I start documenting a simple planning spreadsheet that would evolve (as I worked) into a full-featured monster complete with project plans, budgeting tools and a coffee futures calculator.

That was when I discovered project creep. As a humble hobby knitter, I already knew about projects. After all, I had enough yarn for at least 12 projects in my stash at any one time. I carried a list of yarns on my Palm Pilot, just in case I came across a yarn sale and could pick up the materials for yet another project at a discount. If I'd dared to add up the value of the yarn stashed in my wardrobe, it would probably have been worth more than all my clothing combined.

As a wool shop owner, though, project creep took on a whole new dimension. Now I had access to a wool stash (also known as my stock!) that was not only worth more than my limited wardrobe, it was probably worth more than my car. I also had customers who wanted to know what this yarn and that wool knitted up like - how did it look crocheted - how would this pattern work, there's no photo of the back! On top of that, customers were enquiring about classes - what will we end up with at the end of the class? Do you have a sample? What would it look like in green?

From having 12 projects, all in my colours and my size, I was suddenly confronted with the possibility of an infinite number of projects in every colour and size that my customers might ever conceivably ask about. I was also under a lot more pressure to actually complete some of my projects, so that I could wear my very own hand-knitted creations in the shop. After all, how much cred does a wool shop owner have when she's wearing a cheap acrylic top that she picked up on sale at Best and Less?

I think I rose to the challenge well. On my first day of trading, I brought four bags of wool into the shop. Each bag contained wool for half a dozen projects mixed up together but not enough of anything to do more than about 20cm of knitting. This was fine, because I'd left the patterns and needles in my flat so I couldn't knit anyway. On the second day of trading, I started one of the class projects, a spiderweb wool scarf, and also a vest for myself. On the seventh day of trading, my family came to visit. I finished the scarf, started to crochet a scarf as an example for the beginner crochet class and also promised to knit my father a hat for Father's Day. In my third week of trading, I made an arrangement with a local artist to sell her lovely hand-dyed, hand-spun wools. Of course, the obvious way to promote this new addition to our product range was to buy the two loveliest skeins to knit myself some sort of amazing garment that would bring yarn aficionados into the shop in droves. I thought about entering my projects in Ravelry so that I could keep track of them, but the enormity of the task overwhelmed me before I even began - besides, time spent on Ravelry would be time taken away from knitting up my projects!

For the last month, I've juggled the crochet project (finished this week, now proudly hanging from Dixie the mannequin's left arm), the vest (done the back and part of the left front) and the hat (two rows long so far - happy Father's Day, Dad!!). I've hidden Dad's partly completed birthday jumper (which became the Father's Day jumper, which will now be the Christmas jumper) in my wardrobe so that I don't have to worry about it. I've gone through my stash working out what to knit for summer, and shown The Skeins around at a local knitting group, seeking inspiration for amazing garments.

In fact the only thing that I haven't done is add up the value of my stash: if my stash is worth more than my stock, I really don't want to know!