Tricycling around Crammond. I’m getting quite adept on the trike now, but zipping about is still exciting. Zoom!
Knitting a gigantic swatch. It is now over two feet long and counting. At some point I will settle on something – but in the meantime, I’m finding garter stitch very addictive.
Look! Bruce can fly!
The other stop on our whirlwind North East tour was the Woolshed. I’ve been corresponding with Anne and Barbara for a while now, and it was lovely to finally meet them. Barbara has been designing and working with wool for many years, and I find her very inspirational.
(I-cord rams on the back of Barbara’s Weskit)
Mel fell in love with Barbara’s Lonach design, which is knitted in Albayarn . . .
(cooee! Mel!)
But, being fond of all things fishy, my favourite of Barbara’s patterns has to be her Herring Girl Wrap, which she designed after her involvement with the Moray Firth Gansey Project. The shawl is made modularly: different squares showcase different gansey patterns, and the whole thing is joined with herringbone stitch. It is knitted in Flying Flock DK – a yarn exclusive to the Woolshed, and another of Barbara’s projects.
Why Flying Flock? Well, the Scottish Wildlife Trust manage an innovative flock of sheep who ‘fly’ about Fife, and through conservation grazing, help to maintain the area’s grassland. (The flock, and their shepherdess, Laura, have their own blog here)
Barbara arranged for the Flying Flock’s clip – a mixture of Shetland and Hebridean – to be scoured, processed and spun up at New Lanark.
The end result is a wonderfully sheepy DK which knits up into a lovely fabric, rather softer than one might imagine. A great project, and a great Scottish yarn!
Actually, the Woolshed is stuffed full with great Scottish yarns – Shilasdair, New Lanark, Grampian Alpacas . . . and my favourite Albayarn, of course.
(mmm … tasty Albayarn)
The Woolshed is my favourite kind of yarn store. My only regret is that I don’t live close enough to make it my local!
Thanks for the tour and a great cup of tea, Anne and Barbara!
After admiring the Herring Girl Wrap, our whole trip turned out to have an appropriately fishy theme. We enjoyed some delicious salmon at Gadies (next door to the Woolshed, and which I’d definitely recommend), a tasty fish supper at the Mintlaw chipper . . .and we then felt compelled to seek out the best possible kind of Scottish fare on our way back home to Edinburgh.
SMOKIES! Yum!
Down a pretty country lane . . .
. . . there sits an eighteenth-century mill.
The mill has been in operation for many, many years.
. . . and behind the blue door . . .
They are making YARN!
The particularly bright yellow that was being spun that day seemed to perfectly match the colour of the Milladen fields outside.
This mill, of course is J.C. Rennie &Co, which Mel and I were lucky to visit last week on a trip up to the North-East.
For many years, I have had a thing about Rennie & Co’s Shetland, which is one of my very favourite yarns to work with. There are several distinctive things about it: it is a little finer than many fingering weight Shetlands, has a light soft hand, and is incredibly even and well spun (having witnessed a very efficient blending and spinning process from start to finish I can now see why this is). To me at least, Rennie & Co’s yarns have become instantly recognisable. The company largely work with trade: their hand-knitting yarn is branded by other businesses, and they also spin for many different weavers, machine knitters, designers, and clothing manufacturers. Even if you think that you have never knit with their yarn, I am sure that, in one form or another, most of you will have come across it without knowing it. To give just three examples: you will find it in sweaters sold by a UK clothing brand whose name suggests grilled bread; you will find it in the furnishing fabric lines of a well-known US brand whose name sounds like an academic discipline, as well as in the knitting kits of a popular Danish designer who likes her garter stitch. Over the past five years, as my fondness for knitting and woolly textiles has grown into an obsession, I cannot count the number of occasions that I have wondered “is that Rennies?” This recognisability is partly, as I say, about the yarn’s hand and spinning quality, but is also most definitely about the colours.
Rennie & Co’s palette is beautifully rich and varied. The recipe for each blended colourway can be wonderfully complex.
Mel and I were in raptures, as you can imagine, and, after a fascinating tour of the mill, spent a long time happily squooshing beautifully coloured yarns and fabrics.
The gorgeous colours of Rennie & Co are of particular interest to me at the moment because it was of course, their Albayarn, which is distributed by my friends at the wonderful Woolshed (of whom more in the next post), that I used to knit my Betty Mouat Cowl and Betty Mouat sweater.
So, all being well, I should have some Albayarn kits to show to you at Woolfest!
Thanks so much, Christian and Marian, for a grand day out at the mill!
Just dropping in quickly to say that the new issue of 60 North is out! What? You’ve never heard of 60 North? The name refers, of course, to Shetland’s line of latitude, and is a really well-produced magazine put out by my friends at Promote Shetland. Features in the magazine explore many different aspects of Shetland’s landscape, archeology, wildlife, and culture – including (of particular interest to me) – a piece on Shetland Wool Week, and a great article exploring the fine local tradition of Sunday Tea. Also, you may remember that last Summer I published a feature exploring the history of Shetland Lace with Rowan. I know that those of you who are not in the UK sometimes find it difficult to get hold of the Rowan Magazine, so we have now re-published this piece in 60 North, where everyone can see it. Yes, that’s right: 60 North is available online and it is completely free! Stick the kettle on and and download yourself a copy!
So, here is Bláithín (junior)! This is the kind of cute child’s garment that makes me want to intone “almost too wee” in the manner of Whisky and Brandy Bolland examining Prince’s wardrobe (about a minute into the clip). (Ahem).
Bláithín (junior) comes in sizes from 12 months to 9 years, and has many of the same design elements as the adult cardigan – but obviously on a much smaller scale. For that reason, it would be an ideal project for a beginner to try out some of the techniques I discussed in my steek tutorials, before taking the plunge and steeking an adult-sized sweater.
Just like the adult cardigan, the junior version features i-cord buttonholes . . .
. . .steek sandwich facings . . .
. . . and neat little inset pockets. . .
The yoke features the same floral design as the adult version, but is simpler and shallower.
This sample was expertly test knitted by Eimear Earley, who you may remember as the designer of the shawl pin I mentioned in this post. Thanks, Eimear!
And, like the adult pattern, the junior version was tech-edited by brilliant Jen Arnall Culliford.
So, if you know a small person who would like their very own wee Bláithín, the pattern is now available here or here
I’ll also shortly have print versions of both Bláithín patterns ready for my yarn-store stockists.
I’ve been working on these designs for a couple of months now and am really pleased with them – it is great to get them out of my head and into the world! And, intrusive health-issues notwithstanding, I am enjoying designing tremendously at the moment. I think I can now mention that I am now working on a collection of new designs (yes, an actual book) that should be out by the end of the year. I’ll tell you more about this as time goes on. . .
We’ve spent the weekend in the Highlands, where Tom has been running a race – the Stuc a’Chroin 5000
While he was away up the hill, Bruce and I went for a walk. . .
We were lucky with the weather (later we saw hail and snow!)
Bruce was very suspicious of this wee suspension bridge and teetered over, bandy-legged.
After 13.5 miles, 5000 feet of ascent, 2 hours and 51 minutes, the wanderer returned . . .
The running vest I knitted him 5 years ago (sheesh!) is still holding up to its job remarkably well.
It is a good, warm vest for a chilly mountain top. The yarn I used was Rowan “Calmer”, for those who like to know these things.
We went out for a nice meal to celebrate . . .
. . . and camped in one of our favourite spots.
Tom’s next race is on Jura – in just a few weeks time, we’ll be off to the islands . . .
Hope you’ve enjoyed your weekend too!
Ok, before I begin, allow me a moment: I think that this is probably the best photograph I have seen of myself in ages. I like it because I look comfortable and physically capable — concepts which, a couple of years ago seemed totally unimaginable. Few people seem to talk about just how bloody uncomfortable it is living in a body that has had a stroke. I am happy to say that this discomfort abates somewhat as time goes on . . . Anyway, for a multitude of reasons, I would heartily recommend a trike to anyone with neurological weakness or balance problems. I love it as you can see . . .
Now I have got that shot of me, wildly gurning, out of the way, I can tell you about the cardigan.
It uses the same motifs as the Peerie Flooers designs, and its name is Bláithín, which means, in Irish “little flower.”
It is knit Donegal yarns, “Soft Donegal” – a squooshy, nubbly, and richly saturated tweed.
It is knit in one piece, and then steeked up the centre. Design features include inset pockets, steek sandwich facings, and i-cord buttonholes.
If you look carefully at the centre right of the photograph above, you’ll see a buttonhole. You’ll also note that there is i-cord around the cuffs and pocket tops. Yes, I do like my i-cord . . .
The i-cord edging is added after all the knitting is complete; it is worked all in one piece, all the way around the cardigan. Here is a shot of the edging worked along the “steek sandwich” buttonband. . .
Here is the edging on the inside of the cardigan, so that you can see the sandwich from the reverse, together with a buttonhole . . .
. . .and here is a buttonhole in action.
One of my aims with this design was for it to be as accessible as possible not only to those knitters who were cautious about steeking, but those who were afraid of colourwork. The yoke design is very simple.
It is also easily-customisable for the more adventurous knitter who would prefer to insert their own yoke design. The pattern repeats are short, and the decreases are worked over a number of plain rows.
Bláithín comes in nine sizes, covering a 30 to a 50 inch bust. The cardigan has a gentle A-line shape and is designed to be worn with 1-2 inches of positive ease. It is soft, warm, and very easy to wear.
Ideal for the novice tricyclist!
The Bláithín pattern is now available, and you’ll find it here or here!
I’ve also designed a wee Bláithín, in babies and girl’s sizes. This pattern will be available very shortly.
That’s all for now – I’m off up North today to look at some wool. See you later!
At last! Some actual sunshine! We’ve been out taking photos of my new cardigan design, which will be released tomorrow. Heres a peek!
Why do you weave in your ends away from the steek centre?
This is just a personal thing: I know that many knitters recommend just leaving the ends in the middle of the steek (as everything will be trimmed later), but I personally don’t like to do this. I want the back of the work to be as clean and firm and stable as possible before I begin the crocheted reinforcement. When one is working the crochet, one is poking and re-poking one’s hook through the fabric, pulling up yarn from the back of the work. It is all too easy to catch one or more of the hanging ends, and get oneself in a wee bit of a tangle. Also, in the pattern I’ve just written, the start of the round is one stitch to the right of the five steek sts. I find that it makes things much easier and simpler to just weave in all the ends off to one side, away from the steek stitches, before I start to crochet and cut.
Would you recommend blocking before steeking?
I tend to give the front and back of the work a quick steam before steeking (with an iron on the wool setting, without touching the fabric) just to allow it to relax. I don’t recommend blocking any more vigorously than that – if the stitches are stretched significantly before you work the steek, then they will be more likely to want to pop out of the crocheted reinforcement. (I have seen this happen . . . AIGH!) You can give your garment the full blocking treatment when you have finished it completely, with the steeks properly secured. . .
How about working with heavier yarns?
My new cardigan pattern is actually knitted in a worsted / light aran weight (can you guess which yarn I’ve used?!) My samples (and those of the test knitters) used sock yarn and a 3mm hook to crochet the steek reinforcement, and this worked really well. With all yarn weights I would definitely recommend using a finer, strong yarn that won’t snap, and a smaller hook for your crocheted reinforcement.
Does it matter what colour yarn I use for the crocheted reinforcement?
I used yarn in a contrasting colour for illustration purposes. I would say that, just as if you were sewing an invisible hem on a skirt with needle and thread, that it is probably best to use a yarn that is quite close in hue to the main colour of your garment. If (for example) you were knitting a white cardigan, and used black sock yarn for the crocheted reinforcement, then you would definitely run the risk of the reinforcement showing through between the stitches of the sandwich edging.
Where precisely do you pick up the stitches to work the edging from the right side?
I’ve worked quite a few of these ‘sandwiches’ now, and I would say that for the neatest result (ie, for the edging to sit properly flush against the main pattern), you should pick up your stitches in the gap between the outermost steek stitch and the first stitch of the main pattern. See the diagram below: there are two pattern stitches on either side, and five steek stitches in the middle. You pick up the stitches along the pink lines.
Several of you asked this question, so I’ll add this diagram to yesterday’s sandwich tutorial, to clarify things.
In relation to picking up the stitches from the right side, and my instruction to “make sure you push your needle all the way through to the back of the work, and draw the yarn through from the wrong side,” Donna asked: “are you creating new stitches thru the knitting rather than picking up stitch from the front ie the already knitted stitches?” The answer is: YES. It is is necessary to pick up through the fabric to get this effect on the back of the work.
This is the usual way in which I pick up stitches and it is clearly not everybody’s way (which is why I mentioned it). And in relation to the moot “fence post” issue Lynn raised in her question, logic would indeed suggest that there should be one less loop on the back of the work than the front but . . . having made multiple sandwiches, I have honestly never noticed this. I always check that the number of stitches is the same for back and front needles before beginning to knit them together and it always is… I have been told by my knitting buddies that I pick up stitches in an “odd” way, and I generally begin the process by attaching a slip-knot loop to the back of the work before starting to pull the yarn through. . . perhaps this provides me with an extra stitch? Your thoughts are welcome.
How do you work an i-cord bind off?
This is a very simple (albeit time-consuming and yarn-greedy) bind off. It is probably my favourite finish for a cardigan edge.
Here is how it goes:
Cast on 3 stitches using cable cast on. *k2, k2tog tbl. Slip 3 stitches from rh needle to lh needle. Pull the working yarn across the back * Repeat from * to *. At final 3 sts, finish by k1, k2tog tbl, slip 2 sts to left hand needle, k2tog, pull yarn through.
The result is a neat, raised, corded edge.
How does the sandwich facing relate to the button bands?
The beauty of this method is that the sandwich is the button band! You’ll see precisely how when I show you some photos of my new cardigan (hopefully tomorrow). Another fantastic thing about the i-cord bind off is that it allows you to create neat, integral buttonholes (by binding off a couple of stitches in the normal fashion, and working a couple of rows of plain i-cord over the top of the gap). It is (of course) an EZ method, and I use it on my Manu design, as well as on the new cardigan. It is by far my favourite buttonhole.
Could I use a different bind off?
Yes, of course. Use any method you like. For example, you could simply complete the sandwich by grafting or working a three-needle bind off when you are knitting the back and front stitches together. I am intrigued by the Dale-of-Norway three-needle bind off / picot facing method that Lisa mentioned in her comment. It sounds lovely – I will have to try it.
Could I knit the loops of the crochet reinforcement together with the back and front stitches?
I’d say not. You do not want to put any strain at all on that reinforcing chain. If you tug or pull at it in any way then you run the risk of the cut edges popping out. Don’t do it!
Thanks for all your questions and comments! I hope I’ve covered all your queries.
In this post, I’m going to show you how to further reinforce (and cover) the cut edges of your steek using a techique that I’ve called “the steek sandwich.” There are many other methods of binding / covering steek edges – but this one works well, I think, for a steeked cardigan. The front edges of a cardigan generally see a lot of strain because of the opening / closing action of buttons and button holes – and this method provides a strong facing as well as a stable edge where the garment needs it most.
Above, you can see the wrong side of the swatch where we left it yesterday, with the steek cut, and the crocheted reinforcement holding the cut edge. In the steps that follow, I’m just going to describe exactly what I’m doing, and provide a little more explanation at the end.
First, with the right side of the swatch facing, pick up and knit 3 stitches for every 4 rows, plus an extra 1 stitch each for the top and bottom edges. (I’m using yarn in a contrasting colour so you can see what I’m doing).
For the edging to sit flush against the main pattern, you should pick up your stitches in the gap between the outermost steek stitch and the first stitch of the pattern. In the diagram below, there are two pattern stitches on either side, and five steek stitches in the middle. The pink lines show you where you should be picking up your stitches.
When picking up your stitches, make sure you push your needle all the way through to the back of the work, and draw the yarn through from the wrong side (this may sound obvious, but people do pick up stitches in quite different ways . . . ) So, when you have finished, you should be able to see the backs of your picked up stitches on the reverse of the fabric.
The backs of your stitches should resemble a line of sewn running stitch. And just as a running stitch would, these stitches are further securing and holding the cut edge of your steek. That steek is going nowhere!
Now, beginning with a purl row, work in stockinette for four rows.
Keep these stitches live on the needle: don’t break yarn.
Here are these four rows from the right side.
And here they are from the wrong side, with stitches 1 and 2 of the steek, and the chain of the crocheted reinforcement visible behind them.
Sitting underneath the steek, you’ll see the back loops of your previously picked up stitches.
Now without knitting, pick up each of these loops and place them on a second needle:
Bring the working yarn round from the right side, and work in stockinette for 3 rows, beginning with a knit row.
Keep these stitches live on your needle: don’t break yarn.
The sandwich is now forming: four rows of stockinette on the right side, three on the wrong side, and, in the middle, the steek stitches and their crocheted reinforcement.
This next step is a bit fiddly, so take your time.
Turn the work to the right side.
You have two sets of stitches running parallel to one another: one set on the front, and one on the back needle.
Bring the working yarn around from the back and, with a third needle, knit one stitch from the front needle together with one stitch from the back needle, covering and containing the steek stitches and the crochet chain. When you have knitted each front-needle stitch together with its corresponding back-needle stitch, you end up with this.
A neat stockinette facing!
And here’s what it looks like from the wrong side:
All that remains is to bind off the live stitches. Here, I’ve used an i-cord bind-off (knit 2; knit 2 together through-the-back-loops) (particularly useful if you are working a button / buttonhole band).
Here’s the finished sandwich from the right side . . .
. . . and the wrong side.
Voila! the steek sandwich.
I particularly like the fact that:
1) if you work an even number of rows from the right side, and an odd number from the wrong side, you never have to break yarn
2) Because you just pick up the reverse loops from the right-side stitches, you end up with two perfectly aligned stockinette flaps that can neatly be knitted together.
3) No need to worry about whether you’ve picked up the right number of stitches on either side: the number of stitches is always, inevitably the same!
4) You can weave in your ends by pulling them inside the sandwich.
Points of note:
:: You can of course, work more rows to create a deeper facing. I’ve worked the minimum here: just enough to fit the steek and and its reinforcement inside.
:: I worked the i-cord bind-off from the wrong side. Personally, I like the way this looks.
:: The ‘sandwich’ is formed from three layers of fabric and, as you’d imagine, has a solid, almost quilted appearance. I think this is great for the front openings of a cardigan, where a facing is often necessary anyway. It also works well as a blanket edging, but because it adds bulk, would probably not work so well elsewhere.
If this rain ever stops, I’ll soon be able to show you how the sandwich looks on a finished garment!
Also, I noticed that there were some good questions on my previous couple of posts. I thought I’d answer a few of these (those that I can!) in a final installment of this steek series tomorrow, so if there is anything you want to know that I’ve not covered, or that seems unclear, please say something below.
