Reds! Sunset and hot tropics - the continuing story

 I will finish this within the next few weeks - it won't go back into a "work in progress" bag or bin.

It is the first work I'll complete in my new studio space. I've relocated to Greenfield, in western Massachusetts and hope to concentrate solely on my textiles and paper arts.

This small set of notes is what I used to develop the pattern. It is written on the back of the yarn label.

My working point of view - it's a glorious riot of color.

For an earlier post on this shawl: https://thatknittingblog.blogspot.com/2016/08/reds-sunset-and-hot-tropics.html

Green and aqua

Analogous colors [on the color wheel]

 

Reds! Sunset and hot tropics

My current knitting work in progress.

Stripes! scarf

Scarf, mixed fibers; mohair, silk, wool, nylon, rayon; seed stitch and stockinette stitch; size 4 needles, 14 in.; approximately 10 in. x 74 in.

Yet another scarf recently pulled from the work in progress bin, this one is a lovely weight with good drape.  There are probably around 20 yarns, cut into uneven lengths to give the strips a dynamic feel. The mohair will give it great insulating properties so it will be a great bright scarf to wear all winter.

The size 4 needles make this a fairly dense fabric but the fluffy mohair keeps it light weight. It is a LOT of knitting and I blazed through many a podcast while finishing it up this fall.

 

Blue and Gray Silk

Pure silk worked in seed stitch, size 7 needles, self-fringing.  There are three blue yarns and one gray yarn in this fabric.

Fuzzy and shiny series new entry

The light and fuzzy mohair makes them good for cooler weather.

Wool and alpaca binkie

A nice bulky binkie in a very simple stitch.  I tried a complicated stitch pattern and it was lost in the fuzzy yarn. So now it's just a simple seed stitch and the bulky yarn makes it work up very quickly.

Two gray yarns in seed stitch

Shawl, mixed fibers: ombre dyed wool, silk,  size 5 cable needle, 39 in.
Work in progress.

This has been a delight to knit because the colors of the yarns are constantly changing so that the fabric has a dynamic color scheme.

Colorful silk and abaca

Scarf, mixed fibers, abaca and silk, size 3 double pointed needles, wood, 8 in.

This is a fabric worked with two yarns in seed stitch.  The yarns are worked in alternating rows throughout the length of the scarf. The abaca yarn produces the color variation in the fabric. It's about 8 inches wide and will be approximately 72 inches long.

One yarn is a solid red silk ribbon and the other is a wrapped variegated abaca fiber in pink, red, olive and black.

The fine gauge of the yarns and needles result in a huge amount of knitting in order to complete the rather large scarf 8x72 in.  Because the fibers are not wool, but more like linen or a very fine cotton, the scarf will be more suitable  as a fashion accessory rather than for warmth. The texture after just being knitted is somewhat like linen, meaning it will be a little stiff, and will soften the more the scarf is handled and cleaned. It will eventually drape beautifully like a well-worn linen or silk.

Current work

Degrade pink cotton shawl

Shawl, cotton, seed stitch, size 8 wood cable needle, 32 inches.

This has been lovely to knit, and I like the way it feels as it glides through my fingers while I'm knitting.  It will be a meditation shawl.

I am using a yarn that is dyed with very gradual color changes and I'm using two skeins at once, with the colors changing in slightly different sequences so that the color in the fabric is different than that in either skein of yarn being knitted.

It's about 28 inches from top to bottom and will grow to about 80 inches from end to end, so that it will wrap nicely around the body.

Tan and spring green linen tape

Scarf, linen tape, garter stitch, two colors, size 3 wood cable needle, 24 in

Second attempt - the first attempt didn't even last long enough for a photo. This one was a basketweave stitch.

This is the third attempt at a design using this very fine linen yarn from the Japanese company, Habu Textiles. The two colors fascinate and enrage me because I love them together but the previous two designs just couldn't bring that balance that is needed.  I've settled back into a garter stitch, which alternates the colors each row. 

The yarn at this point still has a crispy texture, and I cannot WAIT to see what it's like once it has been washed! The tape is suited to the garter stitch and enhances the pebbly effect.

Light blue seed stitch shawl

Meditation shawl, mixed fibers, seed stitch size 5 nickle cable needle, 32 in

Using light weight yarns and a size 5 needle makes this fabric a lovely warmer weather wrap.

It is planned as a long shawl that will wrap around both shoulders in the style of an Indian shawl. The stripes will be vertical stripes.

Chunky green merino and cashmere

Wimple, merino wool and cashmere, size 11 wood needles, 10"

I'm just casting on for a nice winter time wimple I'm going to knit a large rectangle and then seam it up the front to make a large tube.  I am going to make a crenolated border for the bottom by casting on and casting off, then I will make a perforated edge for the top, so that a drawstring can be pulled through and one may adjust it around the face.

Fuzzy and shiny - pastels for autumn

Shawl, 14 yarns, mohair, linen, silk, nylon, rayon, beads, seed stitch, size 9 nickle cable needle, 32 in.

Cast on 3 stitches, add four stitches to each row, change yarns each row.

A chart to help organize use of the colors and yarns in the fabric.

The rayon in the "ladder" yarn has a gorgeously shiny surface that reflects light in beautiful contrast to the mohair yarns, which remain a matte surface.

The long edge is about 72 inches, and at it's deepest point it is about 15 inches long.  The shawl can be worn over the shoulders like a traditional shawl with the point in the back, or it can be turned with the point in front.  It can also be worn as a babushka to keep the head and neck warm.