swatching

It took a few years but I finally learned the importance of swatching to get the right gauge before starting a sweater.  They either fit nice or they don't if your gauge is off and the gauge varies between knitters and needles.  I started keeping a notebook of swatches and washing results for later reference and I am finding out I need to keep more complete notes, what needles did I use? what is the gauge? did it shrink? fiber content? which pattern? how many balls of yarn did I use? All these pressing questions for the next sweater.

I usually knit a swatch 8 - 10 stitches larger than the gauge so I have 2 or 3 garter stitches on each side so it doesn't curl then I can measure between the garter edge.   It is also important to block the swatch,  give it a soak and let it dry then check the gauge.  These fibers change after they get wet, some have a lot of sizing and they shrink in length or width so I might need to knit it longer to allow for that shrinkage.  I trace the swatch into my notebook then compare.  I toss it in the washer with similar fabrics and check if it shrinks in the wash.  Don't you hate when that happens to your jeans especially during lockdown this past year.  Then into the dryer on low for a few minutes check and compare eventually drying on medium just to see what happens.

If I have a lot of yarn left over I will knit a washcloth size swatch because that will really tell me how much it is shrinking in the wash or the dryer.  A quarter inch on a 4 inch swatch turns into almost an inch on a 12 inch swatch which could be 3 or 4 inches of shrinkage on a sweater.  So sad when that beautiful sweater now fits a grade school kid. I will even run that larger swatch through the process a couple more times to see if its a once and done shrink or if it continues to shrink.

I know this seems like a tremendous bother but when I spend $60 to $120 on yarn for a sweater and many hours of knitting I don't want to ruin it in the wash.  I always do this fussiness with plant fiber yarn because technically they are all water friendly even though the label says hand wash, dry flat, unlike animal fibers which will either felt with moisture and heat or in the case of superwash wools they will stretch then into the dryer with them until they are the right size again. Some fibers/yarns are worth the extra care and they feel so good.

I tape the yarn label and a piece of the yarn into the notebook and sew a label to the smaller swatch and save it in the swatch box for future reference.  I might want to knit that yarn again.  Happy swatching  and happy fitting  --Ann--

Hours in the car

 

Hours in the car to visit the babies over the weekend and  progress on my sweater, I finished the third ball of yarn and thought I should try it on before starting the next ball and miles to go before we are home so I pulled a pair of socks out of the bag.  

A little rain last night brought the prairie back to life, amazing how much greener the drive home was than the trip up.  

The sweater fits like it should not too snug and not too loose.  

The babies are growing as babies should one girl is a little chatterbox cooing and gurgling the other one likes to roll to the left and over and over she goes until something like her sister gets in the way.  --Ann--

Flowering crabapples

 

The flowering crabapple trees have been magnificent this spring now that spring has made it clear it’s her time to shine. The city planted flowering crabs along the bike path where I frequently walk.  I wish I could put a scratch and sniff patch on this post, so you could smell them too.  Soon all these petals will fall like snow, when I see the pink petals on the ground it always makes me think of the pink in Dr. Seues's book The Cat in the Hat Comes Back  the Cat in the Hat leaves a pink ring in the bathtub and in trying to clean up the ring spreads the pink onto everything.  Savoring spring --Ann--

New yarn

New yarn and already swatched ready to start and the best and most pleasant surprise is...... it matches my favorite summer wedgies.  To dress up a little bit and go out again.  Life is getting back to normal here.   The swatch is so drapy and soft.  Happy knitting  --Ann--

Linen T shirt

 

A finish over the weekend of watching college sports our Jackrabbit women won the Summit softball tournament but sadly our Jackrabbit men lost the national championship game in the last 30 seconds of the game to Sam Huston.

The sweater pattern is Beyond the Dunes by Hinterm  Stein a sleeveless dolman style and knit from the top down this is the 3rd pattern I have knit of hers and love wearing the sweaters and knitting them.  Some patterns are so well written and easy to understand hers are top of the list for me.  I love the little details she adds, the knit and purl stitches at the hem and the  purl stitches and button closure on the back.  I sewed the button to the loop so it won't come undone.  This is a linen viscose and cotton yarn named Linea Pura Romanza by Lana Gross.  It was like knitting with string because linen has no stretch to it but after it is done it does feel good and has a wonderful dressy sheen and it will soften with wear.  I chose each ball of yarn to match the color sequence even if I has to pull off a few yards before I knit the next ball.  It may be my favorite sweater this summer --Ann--

365 Days of Reading

One year, 365 days of reading everyday on my kindle!! I wonder how many hours I have spent reading in the past year or how many pages I have read?  I could go through all those books and look at the pages of print listed or add the average reading hours for each book...... oh that involves a lot of math I think I would rather read.  And there has been a lot of time for that since travel is not happening.  Lots of mental vacations.  

1. Meet Me in Monaco by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb a love story takes place in southern France and Monaco in 1955/1956, about a perfume maker and a photographer connected by Grace Kelly, Princess Grace. Delightful story, now I need to watch some Grace Kelly movies. 
2. Last Port of Call by Jean Grainger Ireland 1912 about a mother and daughter very good story
3. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton another great story by this author. Mothers, daughters, sisters, relationships, a missing fiancé, a castle, WW 2, writers, several mysteries wrapped up in one story.
4. The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fannie Flagg about Buddy Threadgood of Fried Green Tomatoes fame which is the only Fannie Flagg book I haven’t read, I have watched the movie many times.
5. The Nature of Fragil Things by Susan Meissner this writer never disappoints. An Irish immigrant from Donaghadee, I have a cousin who lives there in a house overlooking  the harbor. Most of the story takes place in San Francisco in 1906 at the time of the earthquake and fires. Very good!
6. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier a classic after watching the recent movie remake I read it again.
7. The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton another great story filled with twists and turns, I had to reread some chapters to be sure I had the details right. Oldest daughter is trying to unravel her mother’s life during and before WW2.
8. Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce a story about friendship. The plot seemed a little far fetched but was also humorous.
9. Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah a story about friendship, family, mothers and daughters, and career the story begins in the 70's incudes bits of history and pop culture.
10. Sea of Memories by Fiona Valpy short book less than 300 pages about a grand daughter writing her grandmother’s story beginning before WW2.  Marriage, family, friendship, polio, autism and second chances. Story was slow to get started but very good.
11. Dark Sky by C.J. Box his most recent  book
12. The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan  Stradal strong independent midwestern women. Stradal is so gentle  describing our midwestern quirks, non midwestern writers exaggerate our quirks to the point of insulting.  I hope he writes many more books.
13. The Last Runaway  by Tracy Chevalier about two Quaker girls from England coming to America in 1850. Cultural shock, abolitionists, family, marriage and survival.
14. This is Chance by Jon Mooallam non fiction about Genie Chance, woman radio broadcaster and the 1964 Alaskan earthquake.
15. Distant Shores bu Kristin Hannah about midlife crisis following dreams and finding happiness 
16. The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson about Churchill’s first year of WW2.This was especially interesting because I have been watching Atlantic Crossing on PBS  about Norwegian Crown Princess and President Roosevelt. I have also been watching The World on Fire on PBS also WW 2.
17. Anxious People  by Fredrik Backman, his observations about the human condition are funny, true, spot on accurate. It’s a complicated story with complex characters.  It’s a story I will read again.
18.  Start a new list  --Ann--

a lovely weekend

 A very lovely weekend even though the weather was cool, overcast and rainy at times.  The graduation party was lovely got to catch up with relatives. And I send another quilt out into the world, last view from the sunroom.  My kids came and went over the weekend, some visits were too short.  The babies have grown 6 months yesterday. Our SDSU Jackrabbits football team won on Saturday so will play in the championship game next weekend.  It was a great day to be a Jackrabbit. Hoping for a 4th generation of jackrabbits.  Daughter and hubby cooked dinner Sunday, oldest son and hubby cleaned up the kitchen.  After everyone went home I got to read and knit.  A lovely weekend  --Ann--

Ta dada done

 

 

Done with time to spare!  I'm calling this Flash Bang thanks to Ramona  at Rosebuds and Doodlebugs, she suggested the name for the quilt.  Those colors do come at you with a flash and then the black bang! Its finished  all I have left to do is sew on the label and drape it over the couch and enjoy it until I wrap it  up on Saturday. link to the designer --Ann--                    

machine quilting

Just a little machine quilting progress.  It was sunny but the cold north wind was cancelling out any warmth from the sun so to the sewing room I did go.  The quilting shows up so much better in the direct sunlight.  I quilted from point to point on the batik fabrics and 4 echo type lines in the black not exactly how I planned it on tracing paper but funny how a better solution came to mind when I started sewing.  I need to get this done by Saturday.  --Ann--

blue sky

Four days in a row of blue sky and sunshine. It was glorious! I sat in the sun and read, I sat in the sun and knit, I sat in the sun with my coffee and watched my little world. The birds were busy in the trees, the spruce trees should be called the blackbird condos. Then I spied a rabbit under a locust tree, it wasn’t sitting or hunched ready to flee like rabbits usually sit, it was stretched out on its belly in the grass enjoying the day as much as me. I have never seen a rabbit lounging like that except at the fair. Four days of sunshine at home was almost as good as a real vacation.  —Ann—