Jody Knits

Long overdue update

2010-04-13T07:15:00.000-07:00

Spent several months working with TightKnit over the summer and winter seasons. Looking forward to joining them again this year.

Pictures of new FO's (finished objects) have been making their way to my Facebook fan page instead of this blog, so that is the best way to find me and what I've been up to.

http://www.facebook.com/handmadebyjody

I'll stop by here when I have new patterns to post or other goodies.

About Skulls and Spiders

2009-07-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

Terribly sorry I haven't updated the blog in so long. The summer craft events are in full swing. I have been working every Saturday at the Troy Market as part of TightKnit. It has its ups and downs, but mostly it's been a really good experience for me. Stop by if you are a local, there's some really cool stuff there...
I've spent the last couple of months learning new things and being scared witless by a spider that occasionally hangs out on my front step.

Firstly: Double knitting
Double knitting is a way to knit a reversible design by working a "front stitch" and "back stitch" on the same row of knitting. Basically, you cast on two colors and then work one stitch that will show on the front, then work the next stitch which shows on the reverse, effectively doubling the number of stitches to knit in every row. I have wanted to try it for awhile and have seen a lot of other artists' wonderful designs, but I knew it would have to be something that I REALLY wanted to make to overcome the tedious nature of the work (so many stitches).
I found a chart that was originally intended for cross-stitch, worked it up in an Excel spreadsheet to tweak it a bit and a behold a skull and crossbones pattern. Then came the yarn selection. I'm not a fan of knitting with black yarn, so I went for two shades of pink.

The final product became a panel of the double-knit skull and the rest became a seed stitch bag/pouch with a striped i-cord strap and designed to be reversible because I wanted the ability to view both sides of the masterpiece. Pretty cool, right?
I can't wait to do it again and applaud anyone who can make an entire scarf in double-knit.

The Spider:
I have never really been the kind of girl that gets creeped out by bugs and spiders and other crawling things, but this sucker scared me...
It comes out occasionally on our front step just after dark. It moves super fast if provoked (such as by an extremely close camera flash or trying to set something next to it for gauge). Common consensus with the household and some friends say it's a Wolf spider. I don't care what you call it, I want it to go live somewhere else.

That is all I've got for now. I will be posting the skull bag to my Etsy shop soon and with more designs and color combos to follow.
Happy Knitting.

Twilight inspired Bella Mittens

2009-06-20T10:38:00.001-07:00

I finally read the first Twilight book last month. (I know, right?) I had no desire to see the movie and really didn't get what the big deal was. So, I read the book over the span of 24 hours and just loved the hell out of it. Now I see why everyone was so excited about the movie. The day I finished the book, I bumped Twilight to the top of my Netflix queue. Two days later, I watch the film. It's OK; The casting was good, but I'm mildly disappointed by the way they constructed the film and they totally left out the Alice storyline.
To make up for the book-to-movie translation issues, there were some awesome knits in that movie. The hat was the first thing I noticed on the blogs and Etsy forums, but I had no idea about the mittens.
How could people be so into that (IMHO) boring hat and not care about the Mittens!!

So, jump to the present. I had a downright rotten Monday this week, starting with the car breaking down on my way to work, the office was hellish, rotten weather, and knowledge that funding car repairs (or even comfort food) was out of the question. What to do? Knit something amazing for myself from my yarn stash. Selection: yummy dark green alpaca blend and Bella mittens.
I worked a little bit of them every day this week and they are more awesome than I dared to expect. I don't want to wish the summer away, but I can't wait to wear these mittens.
I'm sorry there's only one picture right now. The computer is being snotty and won't read the card from the camera. I had to take this photo with my phone, one handed so I could model the glove, then email it to myself, then download it, etc. I will post them to my Flickr stream and the Facebook fan page when this thing starts behaving properly.

Ready to post another pattern

2009-05-10T16:05:00.000-07:00

So, I'm lacking inspiration at the moment; this blog and my Etsy shop are actively being neglected while I try to get ready for 8 shows this summer during "Market Saturdays" in Troy , while I still need to find/purchase a tent for the summer.

However, I have been making can cozies to fill the inspirational void...
So here ya go.

I use size 8 double-pointed needles.
My gauge in-the-round is 5 stitches and 5.5 rows = 1" square.
Laid flat the cozy is 4" wide and fits about 4" high on a standard beer can -- or soda, but who am I kidding ;-)
Using some Lion Brand Vanna yarn because I have a bunch left over from making the 12-foot Doctor Who scarf for my husband last Fall (maybe I'll post that photo another day).

I have worked the pattern from top-down and bottom-up.
The top-down seems to work better aesthetically for me.
Have a can handy to determine the height as you are working will help you determine the number of rows.

Top Down:
Cast on 40 stitches,
Work in desired pattern for 30 to 35 rows. The actual number of rows depends on the pattern you choose. The red one, which includes 8 purl rows increases the number of rows to 35. A straight knit (stockinette in-the-round) requires about 30 rows.
Work until you get the height you want, the needles will just start to wrap at the bottom of the can , then start decreasing:
1: (Knit 8, K2tog), Repeat 3 more times (36 sts remain)
2: (K7, K2tog), Repeat 3 more times (32 sts)
3: Knit around (32 sts)
4: (K6, K2tog), Repeat 3 more times (28 sts)
5: (K5, K2tog), Repeat 3 more times (24 sts)
6: (K2, K2tog), repeat 6 times (18 sts)
7: (K1, K2tog), Repeat (12 sts)
8: (K2tog), Repeat (6 sts remain)
Draw yarn thru remaining sts and weave in ends.

It's pretty easy, a good starter for first-time in-the-round knitters.
A nice place to start before casting on your first sock; fewer stitches, less expensive yarn, bigger needles, etc.
And you can get creative if you want to.
If you have a stitch dictionary (or similar) and really want to try something out, why not give it a try in-the-round? As long as the stitch can be adapted to 40 stitches.

I'm selling them for $5 at the Market Saturday. I'll accept custom orders on Etsy.

It's the little things...

2009-04-30T06:10:00.001-07:00

One of my necklaces is featured in a blog!
Check it out: http://tightknitindie.blogspot.com/

2009-04-10T06:57:00.000-07:00

Just a little update that the EtsyKnitters street team is sponsoring a Spring Scavenger Hunt!

Come play at http://tinyurl.com/d35pnp, and you'll get discounts of 10-15-20% and/or free shipping from more than 30 participating shops!

This special spring promotion starts Friday, April 3, and runs through Sunday, April 12.

Hurry up, Sunday is the last day of the promotion...

The Alpaca Mitten Tragedy

2009-03-12T09:59:00.001-07:00

Well, it might not seem like a "tragedy" to you, but my heart sank in a bad way... (yes, that's a cat paw, he was trying to help)
So, I was writing myself a new Mitten pattern and I picked this awesome heather gray alpaca blend.
I figured, based on previous mitten knitting experience, that I have enough in the one skein of yarn to complete the mittens (Error 1 when working an un-proven pattern). In my defense, I had made two complete mittens from a skein this same size, type and brand of yarn before. I took into account that cables use more yarn than a standard knit stitch. I really, really thought I'd have enough yarn. I even split the skein of yarn into two balls, to work with the same amount of yarn for each mitten.

It turns out my fatal error was in maintaining the ribbing through the palm of the mitten. The difference of a literal centimeter-or-so per round extra usage, added up to this heart-breaker. I refuse to pull the knitting apart and re-knit without the ribbing.

To add "tragedy" to this tale, I went to two craft stores and yarn shop and this color is gone. I went to the manufacturer's website and color has been discontinued. I went to all of my standard "yarn purchase" sites and even scouted eBay for this color with no joy.

I finally found the yarn (in the color I need) and it should be arriving by the weekend *phew*
and since I only need a tiny bit to finish these mittens, I'll have enough left over the make a another pair of standard, non-cabled mittens.

One lingering troubled thought: I hope the dye-lots are close...

Some Cool Necklaces

2009-03-01T14:05:00.000-08:00

This is not knitting-related. I just love necklaces with "cluster" pendants. I'd seen a few here and there, but couldn't find one that I would actually pay for; so I made some for myself. Then I made a couple for my Etsy shop. Here's the links:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21692275
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21692855

New Crazy Hat

2009-02-17T07:23:00.001-08:00

This is my new crazy hat, an attempt to create useful objects from my overwhelming stash of leftover yarn. I used 5 different yarns, selecting a batch that would provide enough yarn to finish the hat and coordinate with each other. They are all acrylic or acrylic blends so the care instructions are similar for each. One is a fluffy mohair-like acrylic that adds a little character.

I used a size 9 circular needle and 72 sts. Cut yarn lengths that measured from 45 wraps to 90+ wraps to vary the length of each variation. I picked the yarn I had the most of (Blue Jiffy) and used that as a base, then cut strands of this yarn to be at least 90 wraps. Randomly picked one of each yarn and tied to together (winding as went along) until the ball was about 5" in diameter. The worst part of the bit was all the ends that needed to be woven in.

Then end result was this unique hat that no one else has.
I have separated and bagged about 4 other yarn-sets to make more of these with my leftovers.
This hat is currently available in my Etsy shop, with hopefully more to come.

New Thick Wool Hat Pattern

2009-02-09T09:27:00.001-08:00

This is a super warm, thick wool hat made with Lion Brand Wood Ease Thick & Quick.
I wrote this pattern because I had some of the yarn left over from another project, wanted to make some hats with it, but just couldn't find a pattern to work with it the way I wanted.

I used Size 17 (US) double-pointed needles and less than 1 skein of the yarn. I don't recall exactly but you can make at least 2 (but maybe 3) hats per skein. The photos show one in Dark Grey (Charcoal) and one in Winter White (Oatmeal).

These will easily fit adults with head measurements from 20 - 24"

Cast on 35 stitches
work in the round, knitting each stitch until piece measures 7.5" from cast on edge.

Shape Crown:
Row 1: (K3, K2tog), repeat for round -- 28 sts remain
Rows 2, 4, 6: Knit every stitch
Row 3: (K2, K2tog), repeat for round -- 21 sts remain
Row 5: (K1, K2tog), repeat for round -- 14 sts remain
Row 7: (K2tog), repeat for round -- 7 sts remain

Draw yarn through remaining stitches
Weave in ends.
Be warm.

The Crown shaping is based on a 5 stitch repeat.

If you want to increase the size (for a larger head, or a looser fit), do so in 5 stitch increments to allow the shaping to work its magic. For example, if you think you want to add an inch or two to the width of the hat, cast on 40 or 45 stitches (instead of 35) and consider adding some length if needed. Then decrease per pattern instructions.

If you want to decrease the size, as if for a child, but still want to use the chunky yarn and big needles, cast on fewer stitches (in 5 stitch increments). For example, a 6 - 8 year old child usually has about a 16" head measurement. In this case, I would probably reduce 10 whole stitches from the cast on and reduce the 'work until piece measures' to about 6" (or let the child try it on while still on the needles, making sure their ears get covered and the stitches aren't too stretched on top of their head. Then decrease per pattern instructions.

I hope you use it and love it like I do.
The two hats pictured are still currently available in my Etsy shop:
http://handmadebyjody.etsy.com

Super Awesome Sifl Hat

2009-01-31T08:06:00.000-08:00

Oh, happy day!
I have finished a gift hat for my brother (see picture).
The design is inspired by Sifl, a sock puppet co-star of the Sifl & Olly show that was on MTV in the 90s. My brother and I are HUGE fans of this show and of Liam Lynch, who was one of the brains behind this crazy-awesome show.
In other news, I am working almost exclusively in hats and gloves right now, often reminded of the need for such things in the frigid mid-winter cold of upstate NY.

That's today news.
Next, I will be finishing a new Hat for which I also intend to post the pattern.
Cheers.

Where do I start?

2009-01-29T13:26:00.000-08:00

I knit.
That is a basic summary of how I feel right now.
I am consumed by it.
I just got home from work, changed and had a snack.
I don't want to be making this first entry in my blog; I would rather be knitting.
This evening I plan to:
- watch "The Other Boleyn Girl" on the DVR
- finish a special gift for my brother (an original idea that I am excited to finish and show off)
- cast on the second of a pair of blue ruffle cuff fingerless gloves (picture of the first included)