Close Knitters

Susan has been working steadily on a nice baby sweater.

It’s a lovely Debbie Bliss pattern, a real classic for a baby boy. She was looking around the shop for a new project, and spotted this hat.

The Squiggle Hat is knit in light sport weight yarn to fit a newborn, though a heavier yarn would fit an older child. Since it’s so small, it has to be knit on double pointed needles, or two circulars, or with the magic loop technique. A 16 inch circular is too big for it. Susan has never used double points, so this seemed like a good time to try something new. A lot of knitters will try to keep expanding their knitting experience by trying something new with each project. Cables, lace, ribbing, and circular knitting all expand your options, especially when you’ve just learned to knit.

We made sure that Susan got her hat cast on, and the first row knit on the double pointed needles before we let her out of the shop. We hope to see a finished hat soon!

The Squiggle Hat is a Close Knit pattern, free with purchase of the yarn.

Now that the holidays are past and the weather has been calm, Happy Hour knitters can get happy again.

Scarves, a baby blanket, and a sweater were all in progress when Adrianne came in with these.

They’re medallions (or motifs, if you prefer the term from Crochet magazine) which will be put together into a stunning afghan. Adrienne brought them in because she’s afraid that she’s going to run out of yarn. She chose another color, a blue, to edge and fill in the spaces. The Happy Hour crew was impressed, and gave orders to her to bring in the final product on a Friday afternoon, so we can see it. It’s a wedding gift for a friend.

Happy Hour is Friday from 3 to 6. BYO Knitting or Crochet!

The holidays may be past, but the weather is still cold, and there are still hats to knit. Hats for the hardy souls who run outdoors in winter, hats for shovelers, and hats for dog walkers.

I’ve started a hat out of the sport weight Zauberball.

The Zauberballs great fun, with lots of color changes. They make great socks, since the yarn is a machine washable wool/nylon blend. I also thought it would be a nice hat. I wanted a very plain hat, so thought that a knit in hem would be a nice touch.

First I knit the inside of the hem, the part that will be inside. Two inches, which is how long I want the hem, a row of purl stitches, to create a turning line, then another two inches of stockinette. Now it’s time to knit the hem into place.

To knit the hem in place- the right hand needle goes through the stitch on the left needle, then through the cast on stitch. Grab yarn, and pull through both loops. Now the bottom edge (the cast on) is knit into place.

Now it’s straight stockinette for a while.

Happy Hour was snowed out last week, we hope to have happy hour knitting this week. Every Friday, 3 to 6 pm. BYO Knitting or crochet.

So, what do you do when you’ve knit something, but it has issues? Well, it depends on the issues. If it’s size, then rip and reknit larger or smaller. If it’s color, the fix may be in your kitchen.

Kool Aid is a great dye for wool. And if the item to be dyed is small, like a pair of socks, it’s a piece of cake. Wet the socks, toss in the microwave with Kool Aid and vinegar, zap for a minute, and voila! a whole new color.

Yes, the color is permanent. No, the wool doesn’t felt, because there is no agitation.

I knit these socks. They are my mother in law’s Christmas gift.

However, I didn’t like the striping. It’s the white, it really stands out. Not at all the thing to wear with black jeans and sneakers. So I gave them the Kool Aid treatment.

First I used grape. Very nice, and purply. But the socks were a little too short, so I had to reknit the toes. I had cherry Kool Aid, so I thought that red toes would be fun. So I dyed them again, in cherry.

Way better!

How do you do this?

Mix Kool Aid powder (use several packets for dark colors) with enough water to cover the items to be dyed. Add at least two tablespoons white vinegar. Heat dye in microwave for a minute. While it heats, get the item to be dyed wet. Put the wet item in the dye bath, make sure that it’s fully submerged. Microwave at high power for a minute. Stir the item, microwave for another minute. Take it out of the microwave, and use tongs to lift the item out. It will be hot, it’s just been microwaved! If the water isn’t clear, or nearly clear, put the item back in and let it sit for a few minutes. Rinse the item well with warm water, use a little soap if the fruity smell of the Kool Aid bothers you, and let dry.

You can dye wool before knitting it also, just put the loose skein in the dye bath. Also, Kool Aid will only dye fibers with animal protein in them, so it won’t dye cotton or rayon. It will dye alpaca, cashmere, and some wool blends.

Happy Hour starts again this Friday, from 3 to 6. BYO Knitting or Crochet, all welcome, no fee.