You have a lot of yarn in your stash! Maybe you don’t have the label. A simple burn test will tell you what type of fiber you have. While this is not an actual scientific experiment, you can learn quite a bit about the fiber with this test.
Watch the video to get an idea of the burning properties of man made fibers, animal fibers and plant fibers.
The only true way of telling whether a 100% wool yarn is superwash or not is to knit up a small sample and wash it in hot water to see if it felts. The burn test is the same for both of them.
So! There it IS! My unscientific experiment to help you find out what kind of yarn you have!! Now… KnitYourselfHappy!!
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Next time you need to knit a small circumference in the round, try the Addi FlexiFlip needles. (This is not a paid endorsement.) For those of you who have Fear Of Knitting With Double Point Needles,
You may remember my two previous articles about designing a sweater for my brother Bob using wool from his two Babydoll Sheep, “Wooley” and “Lambchop”.
Part one of the series is found here. Part deux can be found here.
Other knitting projects skipped ahead of this one: baby blankets, a full sized blanket, felted oven mitts as gifts, and class projects.
I am happy to get back to this item. I finished the body of the sweater and joined the shoulders using a three needle bind off.
I started the first sleeve, worked for about 6″ and decided the increases were too fast. I frogged (rip it, rip it) back to the second cable row and slowed the increase rate.
I usually don’t “Hand wash, lay flat to dry” until after the garment is put together, but I just HAD to see how the cables would open up. I like it!
Stay tuned. I started it October 2017. It will be finished by the end of THIS October!
Occasionally, a pattern will have you cast on in the middle of your project, not just the beginning. Examples of this include casting on stitches to create a sleeve, or over the top of any bound off stitches such as a buttonhole.
The perfect project for casting on in the middle of a row is “Seven Circle Necklace” by Kristine Johnstone on Ravelry. Here is an example I made with fingering weight yarn. This is a great small project for Summer knitting!
You may choose to use any of these cast ons at the beginning of a project so you don’t run out of the long “tail”, but be aware that the cable method produces a firm cast on.
There are a few ways to cast on in the middle of a knit proect; I will show you three: Cable Cast On, Knit Cast On, and Purled Cast On.
I love stitch combinations that look difficult but are very easy to work. My favorite stitch right now is the “Tiny Bowknot” stitch.
There is a lot of visual action going on with the Tiny Bowknot Stitch without too much difficulty, which makes it perfect for any level knitter. I worked this as an all over stitch on a cotton sweater many years ago and I still get compliments on it!
This pattern is readily available in many stitch dictionaries.
Written pattern for Tiny Bowknot:
This stitch is worked with a multiple of 6 stitches. That means that the number of stitches on your needle must be divisible by 6.
Row 1 (WS): P
Row 2: K
Row 3: (P3, k3) repeat between () to end.
Row 4 Bowknot Row: (P1, k1b, p1, k3), repeat between () to end.
K1b= knit into the next stitch in the row below the stitch on the left hand needle.
Row 5: P
Row 6: K
Row 7: (K3, p3), repeat between () to end.
Row 8 Bowknot Row: (K3, p1, k1b, p1), repeat between () to end.
Repeat these 8 rows as desired.
If you want a more subtle pattern, you can add more rows of stockinette stitch between the bowknot rows.
This pattern is perfect for a garment, shawl or blanket. Make a border of garter or seed to prevent this stockinette stitch-based pattern from rolling on a flat fabric.
Have fun with this pattern! It’s my favorite stitch right now!
