Fiber Facts - Silk

When I was a beginning knitter and starting a new project, I generally used the yarn that was called for in the pattern and got good results. Being adventurous, though, I started pretty quickly to venture off the pattern and try using different yarns than what was recommended. Sometimes these experiments produced great results and other times, well, let's just say that a poncho that goes down to your feet makes a great blanket! During these experiments, I learned the importance of gauge - making sure that the yarn is the same size as what is called for in the pattern. I also learned the importance of choosing the right fiber. Some fibers are washable, others require a more gentle touch; Some fibers drape very well but other fibers tend to form a firmer fabric - you get the idea. I want to pass on some of the basics about fibers that can help you make good yarn choices.


Today we are going to talk about my favorite fiber: silk! It drapes beautifully, refracts the light in amazing ways, and just feels good on the skin. What else should you know about this fiber?


1. Silk fiber is harvested from the cocoons of the mulberry moth pupa (silkworms). The cocoons are cultivated to a certain stage of development, at which time they are treated with a combination of boiling and soapy water to help loosen the silk from the other material. The silk fibers are then unraveled by hand and processed to make fabric or yarn. Peace Silk, in which the pupa are not killed, is available, but at a significantly higher cost.


2. China is the highest producer of silk in the world today and is where the production of silk began.


3. Silk is shimmery because the fibers are a triangular shape, allowing the light to refract at different angles.


4. Silk has a strong tensile strength when dry, but it loses up to 20% of this strength when it become wet. This means that you have to be very careful when washing and blocking silk.

5. Silk is also not very elastic. When it stretches, it tends to stay stretched out.

6. Because silk is absorbent and light, it is a good warm-weather fiber. It is also good to wear close to the skin in cold weather because its low conductivity keeps warm air trapped.

7. Silk blends quite well with other fibers, particularly wool.

8. Silk drapes wonderfully. It is one of my favorite fibers for shawls.

9. Silk feels soft and smooth against the skin - again because of the smoothness of the fibers.

Enjoy your next adventure into the world of fiber! Now you have a little more information to help you make some good choice on that journey!



 

A Few of My Favorite Things–Now That’s a Market Bag

When summer comes, knitters sometimes put away the needles until fall, thinking that there’s not much fun to knit when it’s too hot for wool. Perish the thought! Summer is a great time to knit with cotton and it’s a great time for knitting accessories, particularly things like bags that can be used to tote things to and from the lake, cabin, or your favorite getaway.

This summer, I tried my hand at “Now That’s a Market Bag” from Knot Your Mama’s Knitting Patterns in Universal’s Cotton Supreme (100% cotton) Brown. The pattern is well-written and easy to follow. The most difficult thing to handle is the provisional cast-on at the beginning, but the explanation given in the pattern is very clear.

This was my first time using Universal’s Cotton Supreme and I was pleasantly surprised by how soft a hand it has. In fact, I think this yarn is probably better suited to garments than I had expected. Nonetheless, it made a lovely market bag.

 

Lagniappe–June 17, 2012

I am originally from the South. My extended family is from Mississippi and Louisiana, but I grew up in Florida, which explains why I don’t have a Southern accent. Nonetheless, I have a few Southernisms – I refuse to give up the word “ya’ll” (it’s incredibly useful) and I love the word “lagniappe” which I picked up during my years in Baton Rouge at LSU and New Orleans at Tulane Med School. Lagniappe means “a little extra” or “a bonus”. That’s what today’s post is – some lagniappe, little extras for you.

• Patrick and I met with the rep from Interlacement Yarns yesterday morning. Oh. My. Goodness. So many beautiful yarns!! Right now, we’re going to start with the Lotus, a 100% silk lace weight yarn that comes in a 500 yard skein, which is perfect for that warm weather shawl project. That yarn should be in the shop in a week or so!

• I have become a hat fiend! I agreed to make a couple of hats for a couple of friends of a friend who are both undergoing chemotherapy and I loved them so much that I’m working on another by the same designer. The first two were Inishmore by Cheryl Andrews (see earlier blog post) and my current work in progress is Picadilly, also by Cheryl Andrews. She has several other hat patterns that I love, so I may end up making even more hats! In any case, you can purchase the patterns at The Knitting Nest through Ravelry In-Store pattern sales and we can help you find the perfect yarn.

• Yarn bowls! Check out our Facebook page for pictures of some of our yarn bowls. We have two potters currently making yarn bowls for our shop. I have one at home that I’m using and I LOVE it!

• Knitting needles and shawl pins! Patrick is getting really good at turning these on the lathe. Again, pictures are on the Facebook page and Patrick updates these pretty regularly. Some needles have glass beads that are made by a local glass artist at Blessings Glassworks!

• On a personal note, I’m getting Botox tomorrow for my migraines. So, for the next three months, I won’t be able to raise my eyebrows or wiggle my ears. Actually, I can’t wiggle my ears right now, so that’s a moot point. But, when I had Botox 6 or 7 years ago, my kids had a blast with the fact that I couldn’t raise my eyebrows. Stop in the shop sometime and say something outrageous and get a laugh out of the fact that I can’t raise my eyebrows at you! Or not. You can just stop by and check out the new merchandise and sit and knit a spell (there’s those Southern roots coming out!)!

 

A Few of My Favorite Things - English Driving Cap

I just finished my second English Driving Cap using the pattern Inishmore by Cheryl Andrews of Wooly Bear Knits. I chose this pattern because these hats are for some ladies who need chemo caps and they wanted this style of hat. I liked also that this design doesn’t require anything in the brim for extra stabilization.

The first hat is made from Universal Cotton Supreme (100% cotton) in Ecru. The second is out of Cascade Sierra (80% cotton, 20% wool) in Plum. The pattern says that it is for experienced knitters because it is challenging. I would have to agree. There are no difficult stitches, but keeping up with the short rows as well as knitting such an “architectural” item requires experience in reading patterns and close attention. Even with that, I had to “tink” and “frog” sections at times. I don’t want to discourage you from trying it, though! It is quite rewarding when you are done! And now that I’ve made two of them and I’m about to make a third (for myself), I’m happy to help if you get stuck.

Both the yarn and the pattern (as well as needles and notions) can be purchased from The Knitting Nest in Weyauwega. Stop in and check us out!

Technique Tuesday - A Lifeline

No knitter likes to have to “frog” (rip out) or “tink” (unknit) their work. Especially when it’s lace. Unknitting lace is quite difficult because you are often working with rather small yarn and have lots of yarn-overs to deal with. So, what’s a knitter to do?

This is when you need a lifeline. Every few rows, you use a needle and some smooth yarn or thread (some have suggested dental floss) and slide it into that row of stitches.  If you make a mistake from that point forward, it’s easy enough to “frog” down to the row with the waste yarn in place.  All the stitches are neatly held on that waste yarn and you can just slip them on to your needle and start back up again.

I’m working on a shawl with a 14 row repeat.  At row 14, I put in my lifeline.  If I get to row 14 on the next round, I just pull the lifeline and thread it in at this new spot.  Have I needed to use it?  Yes, indeed!  And I was thrilled to have it because tinking Cascade’s Baby Alpaca Lace yarn, while possible, is not easy.

Unfortunately for the picture, my lifeline is about the same color as the working yarn.  I labeled them, though, so I hope you can see that the lifeline is about 14 rows from the working yarn and the needle.  I’m about to pull out the lifeline and rethread it onto the current row.

The lifeline can be used in any type of knitting, but it’s particularly helpful with lace when going backward is so tricky.  If you have any questions about this technique or any other knitting, crochet, or fiber issue, don’t hesitate to call, ask on Facebook, or stop by The Knitting Nest!!  We’re here to help!

A Few of My Favorite Things–Knit Noro Accessories and Debbie Macomber Gerbera Print Yarn

Debbie Macomber Blossom Street Gerbera Print Yarn from Universal Yarn has to be one of my favorite variegated yarns.  It is 100% wool, single plied, worsted yarn, but the colors are what make it stand out.  Each colorway has several rich colors that complement each other and give a beautiful effect when knitted.

The Knit Noro Accessories book is full of beautiful patterns originally knit in Noro yarn.  However, they work up beautifully in many other brands of variegated yarn, particularly Gerbera Print yarn.  There are a variety of types of accessories in the book and the patterns are well-written and easy to follow.

I chose to use Gerbera Print yarn in color 204 – Lazy River – and the pattern Riverbed Rib Hat.  I’m immensely pleased at how it looks.  The colors are bright and beautiful and the hat fits very well.

The next time you are looking for a book of patterns for accessories, particularly for variegated yarn, you really can’t go wrong with the Knit Noro Accessories yarn.  And I really love the Debbie Macomber Blossom Street Gerbera Print yarn and I think you will too.

Come check out both items at The Knitting Nest!!  We’d love to see you!!

More Than Just Selling Yarn

Saturday at The Knitting Nest was a great day.  Not because I was there – I was actually at home with a migraine.  Not even because of the tractor pull on Main Street, although Patrick tells me that I missed some great small-town Wisconsin fun.  It wasn’t even great because we sold yarn, although Patrick did have several customers, which is always nice for a retail shop.

Saturday was great at The Knitting Nest because we got to be part of something bigger and more important than selling yarn (or even the tractor pull).  It started when Brandy, a friend and customer of The Knitting Nest, posted on Facebook that she needed a bunch of red embroidery floss for a project that one of the Girl Scouts in one of her troops is doing to help prevent bullying.  Girls are going to make friendship bracelets to give away while encouraging other girls to “be friends, not bullies”. 

Patrick thought this was a great project, so he offered to purchase the embroidery floss at our wholesale cost and donate a couple of boxes to the project.  He then posted on our Facebook page that people could purchase the embroidery floss from us at our cost and we would get it to Brandy for her project.  By the end of Saturday, The Knitting Nest had purchased 13 boxes of red embroidery floss for this project.

Thirteen boxes of 24 skeins of floss is only 312 skeins out of 1600 skeins needed, so we only donated 20% of the total for this project.  But, that is 312 skeins that weren’t donated before Saturday morning. 

Why am I telling you this?  To shout about how great The Knitting Nest is?  No.  You already know that!  My reason for sharing this story is to point out the importance of community brick-and-mortar retail shops.  The people who participated in this event are part of our community, just like the people who made chemo caps last month for our knit-a-long.

Community retail shops are invaluable parts of the local economy, but they are also part of the volunteer and charity work of the community.  The next time you stop in at your local coffee shop or other small business, look around; you’ll probably find that they are promoting one or more community and/or charity events or projects.  Supporting local businesses means more to your town or city than just a skein of yarn or cup of coffee – it’s being part of your community’s life.