Monthly Archives: September 2008

Bohus and Rovaniemi

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This weekend was a busy one, knitting-wise. The West Coast Knitters Guild brought Susanna Hansson to town for two workshops, one on Bohus knitting and the other on the lapland mittens from Rovaniemi. I enjoyed both classes though the second one spoke to me more. The Bohus garments are gorgeous, the Rovaniemi technique somehow rustic and alive. Lots of other people have blogged about the workshops in more detail than I have energy for right now; suffice to say that if you're interested in fine-gauge colour-work knitting, either or both classes would be fun.

And now it's back to the sweater I'm knitting for Jean Wong's Level 2 knitting class (no, not the Nihon Vogue, I don't have time for that, this is the abbreviated version), so I won't be finishing the wristlets any time soon, unfortunately. Oh well, that's life. So much knitting, so little time.

Level 1 Results

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I actually got the results back some time ago, but with one thing and another, haven't had the time and energy to post. The committee had some very kind things to say about my work, as well as pointing out some weak spots. I have to resubmit two swatches, but not the ones I feared, funnily enough. I also have to rewrite the pattern I submitted.

What I do well: good tension, although with some weak spots in the edge stitches, particularly on the purl rows. They found the written work good (just as well, given the amount of time I put into it!).

What I need to work on: transition tension in ribbing, tension in the edges, measuring, making sure that swatches are square. They also pointed out my gauge varied in the hat, with the gauge at the top being smaller. I'm not sure if that was due to my blocking, or whether my gauge changed when I switched to two circular needles from one. It's something to look out for, anyway.

I was impressed at the amount of detail they went into with the comments. Even though almost all the swatches were accepted, they still said what was good and weak about each one, with tips on how to correct the weak areas. And those swatches I have to resubmit? I managed to twist the increases on swatch 5 and the decreases on swatch 7, which are clearly visible when I look at the swatches. I guess I was in "I have to get this out" mode, and didn't step back and look at the details. I'm planning on knitting those in the next week or two, rewriting the pattern, and sending it all off. Then I'll take a break before Level 2 as I will need to practise things like stranded knitting and intarsia first.

Catkins

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I've liked the look of Niebling doilies for many years, even though ours is not really a doily house, and I tend not to surround myself with frilly things, or wear frilly clothes. They're structured beautifully, and are very appealing. Eventually I joined the Yahoo! NieblingLaceKnitters, and started the summer's knit-along, the birch catkins doily.

I've made a little more progress than in this photo, but my camera is busy charging right now. I'm currently on row 88 of 104; some distance to go, but the bulk is done. I had a few problems getting started. I tried various suggestions ("belly button" start, "easy beginner's" start) and ended up doing the standard Emily Ocker start, as it was the easiest for me to get right. Then it was mostly hex mesh (fun!), using a single yarnover for rows 9 - 19, a reverse yarnover from 21 - 25, and the double yarnover from 27 on. I started on four dpns, moved to two circs and one dpn fairly fast, lost the dpn on row 13, and was on a single small circular needle by row 18.

Thread: J & Coats Royale Classic Crochet Thread, size 10, in mint green 9 (colour 428); I just bought a second ball as the first one is almost done, with its 320m. I started on 3mm needles, and moved to 3.25 mm at row 63. I was thinking about moving up another size, but never quite figured out the right place for it.

The trickiest part for me was row 83, since before then when you see the double yarnover, and the skp and k2tog, it's hex mesh. In row 83 you have the same stitches, but in a different arrangement since it isn't hex mesh any more. This threw me for a bit as I thought I'd made a mistake; I had to go and look at a few pictures of finished doilies to convince myself that it really did change there.

Oh yes, I worked the k3tog as sl1, k2tog, psso.

early view of Niebling birch catkins

early view of Niebling birch catkins