Knit Up & Dye Episode 127 - In Limbo

Host: Jessica L'Heureux
Ravelry: jesseknits
Instagram: dyemonkeyyarns
Email: jesse@dyemonkeyyarns.com
Shop Online: http://www.dyemonkeyyarns.com
Patreon: https://patreon.com/knitupanddye

Theme Music:
"Throw the Hammer Hard" - Bob Log III
Thank you, thank you, Bob for letting me use this!
Buy his music at boblog111.com
BOB is on WORLD TOUR and might just be near you.
Please visit his website for a show near you.

Featured Yarns, Patterns & Products:

"How to Eat an Elephant Blanket"
My formula is on Ravelry or email me and I will send you a copy.

Adapted/Modified "Brickyard" sweater by Elizabeth Doherty
Pattern available on Ravelry.
Yarn is "Glamrock" colorway on my Rumba Monkey DK base.

"Through the Clouds" by Rachy Newin
Pattern Available on Ravelry

"Jeannie's Cowl" Jamie McCanless
Pattern Available on Ravelry
Kit Available at DyeMonkeyYarns.com

"Losange" by Fatimah Hinds
Pattern in Vogue Knitting Holiday 2019 pg 49
Yarn is "French Gourd" colorway on my
Double Shuffle Monkey Aran base.
My found errata notes on my Ravelry project page: "Million Dollar Sweater"


Upcoming:

"The Shift" by Andrea Mowry
Will be knit using:
"Whisperers", "Brother", and "Call Me Debbie" on Simple DK
by Lolodidit... lolodidit.com

And, I showed you "Rainbow Crow" on Merino Sock
by Serenity Fibers... serenityfibers.com

Dye Monkey Yarns Trunk Show February 2020 @ KnitCircus Yarns
https://knitcircus.com/
592 Grand Canyon Dr. Madison, WI 53719


**********
LIVE EPISODE
Sunday, January 26th
5PM Eastern, 4PM Central, 3PM Mountain, 2PM Pacific
Log in with your google account on YouTube and participate - interact with me LIVE!
***********

AND... Watch for more information about the Squircle KAL & Tutorial!
(finally, right?!?!)

Make EVERYDAY count.
Know you are loved and make sure the people around you know that they are loved too.

Go love someone.

Knit Up and Dye Episode 96 - Filthy and Rough, but Here!

Update on life and health. Thank you all for your support! Actually have some knitting to show off, early call for test knitters for Porch Light shawl, a pile of acquisitions to show off, and a sneak peek at this month's Patreon colorway. We've started a trial adoption of a new companion for Rudy and I've got some doggie play video at the end for your enjoyment.

Host: Jessica L'Heureux
Ravelry: jesseknits
Ravelry Group: Knit Up & Dye Podcast
Instagram: dyemonkeyyarns
Blog: dyemonkeyyarns.com
Email: jesse@dyemonkeyyarns.com
Etsy: http://dyemonkeyyarns.etsy.com
Patreon: https://patreon.com/knitupanddye

Theme Music:
"Throw the Hammer Hard" - Bob Log III
Thank you, thank you, Bob for letting me use this!
Buy his music at boblog111.com

Featured yarn & bag by Shannon @ Supernatural Yarns
http://www.supernaturalyarns.etsy.com

Help support Paperback Rider Little Free Library Fundraiser to purchase a tricycle to help distribute books for free.

50% of all pattern sales and 10% of all yarn sales through end of Feburary will be donated. She is 100% funded - thank you all for your support. Our end of month final contribution will be for extraneous items such as locks and lights, etc.

You can also find stories and pictures from her literary pedaling adventures on her instagram account at @paperbackrider.lfl

Love you all! Thank you ALL for your love & support

Knit Up and Dye Episode 59 - Breathe In, Breathe Out

Sorry, no demonstration this week, but I do discuss how I document my colorway formulas, give you some great resources for your business supplies and talk about my healing progress and prognosis. Quick sneak peek (spoiler alert) of the subscriber level custom colorway for my patrons and I show off my most recently completed beaded doll.

Knit Up and Dye Episode 50 - Knit Mania

I'm a knitting fool - two pairs of socks, a fingering weight sweater and and fingering weight blanket are on the needles! I demonstrate the Chinese Waitress cast on - if you are looking for a super stretchy short tail cast on, this one is for you.

Knit Up and Dye Episode 49 - Traveler's Tales

In which I gab at length about my trip to Knit Ithaca NY, visit mum & sis in Maine, then Pop Up at Unwound in La Crosse WI and show off my projects and acquisitions as well as some upcoming designs.

Sock-cess!

 For my Transfiguration OWL at Hogwarts this term I worked a total of 2080 yards to create 6 pairs of socks in 66 days, averaging 1 sock every 5.5 days.  To celebrate, I promptly cast on another sock.  

Yes, I'm crazy, but look at all the wonderful socks I'll be sporting on my big feet!  WoooHooo!

Clockwise from Top Left:  Peace Rose Garden Socks by Diane Edgerly in KnitPicks Felici: Botany, Cherokee Rose (prototype) by ME! in KnitPicks Stroll Tonal: Wine Tasting, Nutkin by Beth LaPensee in Mountain Colors Crazyfoot: Harmony Softrock, Double Agent by ME! in Hermione Jean Creations Mermaid Sock: Enchanted Forest, Dance Lessons with McGonagall by ME! in KnitPicks Stroll Tonal: Kindling, and Observers by Celia Jones in Hermione Jean Creations Gryffin Sock: Molly

January Projects

This month, I completed a pair of socks. Ok, so I'm a day late posting what I did in January, but here they are:

This pattern is Peace Rose Garden Socks by Diane Edgerly (available for free on Ravelry) and I'm proud to admit fully that I CHEATED!!! I used self striping yarn, rather than do all the color changes. This sock would knit up nicely in about any yarn. A spiraling stripe maybe not so much, but a lightly variegated, solid, kettle dye or self striping works nicely. If you choose to work this pattern yourself, do keep in mind, this pattern is designed to be more of a slouch sock as the leg is bigger around than the foot, which is tighter.  I made minor changes to eliminate any slouch on my pair, as I hate constantly feeling like I need to pull my socks up.  I also worked my heel differently where I simply don't like a stockinette heel - I find them too weak against my sock abuses.  This was a quick and easy knit.  I used KnitPicks Felici in Botany.  Anyone who truly knows me knows that my not making the stripes match up perfectly is fully out of character.  Usually I like my socks to be 100% identical, down to the stitch when stripes are involved.  This simply wasn't an option this time so I went for "wholly out of whack" instead.  Pair 1 of 12 complete!

Non-stop Needles!

Lately, my needles have been working non-stop.  I've got a lot of things either in process or recently finished.

Currently I'm working on my Charms OWL at Hogwarts (see HPKCHC group on Ravelry), as well as my Dozen Shawls in 20Dozen KAL (group also on Ravelry) with this project - the Aeolian Shawl by Elizabeth Freeman.  This pattern is available for FREE over at Knitty.com in the Spring '09 issue.  I'm working this out of Madelinetosh Tosh Lace in the Saffron colorway - 950 yards of orange, gold, copper, rust and 100% superwash merino beauty!  I fell in love with this yarn several months ago and bought a skein with no real plan - I only knew that it was for me and had to be made into something special and beautiful. When my wedding anniversary came around in December and I bought a new black dress for our dinner celebration, I found myself yearning for this in a shawl as it would have been a spectacular accessory.  Early this month I cast-on and look forward to wearing it well before our next anniversary, if not also then.  This is the first pattern I've ever worked that featured nupps - a new technique for me.  Nupps are essentially bobbles in lace and need to be worked very loosely.  For this pattern, I'm working 7-stitch nupps.

I'm also working on a pair of bed socks for John, having just completed a pair for myself.  For these I'm using  Malabrigo Worsted.  His are being worked in Ravelry Red.  I worked my pair in Lime Blue  This yarn is incredibly soft, smooth and down-right yummy.  No, it is not the ideal yarn for socks... it does pill, and I am making socks out of a worsted weight yarn, but these are for sleeping in, and do not get any more wear than kicking in the night will cause.  Being 100% pure merino wool, they are delightfully warm.  Since completing mine I've actually seen a significant improvement in the quality of my sleep (amazing what warm feet will do) as well as a significant increase in my desire to stay in bed in the morning relishing their warmth.  


I particularly loved how the striping lined up in these without even trying.

Friday concluded my most recent session of the Skill Sampler Hat class I teach at Village Wools here in Albuquerque.  I re-knit whatever item I teach with ever session, and therefore I have yet another (5!) of my Gracie hats.  This time I chose Cascade 220 Heathers in Nectarine.  It's a brighter color than I've worked this pattern in before and I really like it.  I really enjoy working with this yarn.  You get a lot of "bang for your buck" with 220 yards of 100% Pure Wool for an affordable $9-11.  This hat pattern works up in 140-170 yards (depending on embellishment), well within the 220 yards Cascade provides.  This yarn blocks well, and I've not had a problem with splitting.  My students almost always have favorable things to say about it in class.

Also on the completed works list is this adorable change purse - Coin Pocket - Monster Fish by Daniela Nii, available on Ravelry for just $4.00 US.  I simply couldn't resist.  This was a quick project, that I was able to knit and felt in one day. To be fair, I modified the eyes from the instructions... somehow a fish out of water for that long seems more natural dead to me - I have an odd sense of humor, I know. 


This was my first hand-felting project… I’ve always just thrown it in the washer before, which I learned gave me a whole lot more control over the felting process, however I will be needing to pick up some good rubber gloves before I do this again as it was a rather harsh process for my hands.  Sewing the zipper in was a bit clumsy at first - place it, pin it, UNZIP it and then sew. I ended up ripping it out once just because I wasn’t thrilled with the placement. Next time I’ll baste it in place first. (Lesson learned!)  It also occurred to me that sewing in hook and loop tape, you could make this a cat toy with a catnip pouch inside and when it gets frayed, simply remove the catnip pouch and toss in the washing machine to re-felt.   I’m thinking a whole lot of people and fuzzy friends will be getting these for Christmas.  I have two more awaiting fins.  For this project I used two of my own Kool-Aid dyed yarns.  100% wool (duh, felting!) and I loved the effect the color changes had once felted.  

Also on the needles, lest I be without something to do, is the Holden Shawlette by Mindy Wilkes available for FREE on Ravelry, which I'm working from Twilight Luxury Wool in Teal Sparkle by SoftnShiny (keep your eye out for a Dyer Moments Interview with her in the near future!)  I've got 870 yards of this gorgeous dark teal (picture color is quite off, sorry) that features 75% superwash merino, 20% silk and the sweetest little 5% bit of silver stellina which adds a nice accent.  Normally, I don't go for sparkly yarn - glitter just isn't my thing, but this one is delicate enough that you have to look twice to be sure of what you saw.  I have modified Mindy's pattern slightly, to work less of a stockinette field.  As I've blogged before, I do not like being a stockinette-zombie, I prefer the action and challenge that you can only get whilst running from zombies.  (Shout out here to both Ray and John, brothers both in blood and spirit who have action plans in place for the inevitable Zombie Apocalypse - I love your kind of crazy!)   Therefore, I did a little math and am working the wave charts earlier, as well as many more of them - the original pattern calls for just 450 yards.  My finished shawl will be larger and slightly lacier than the original, but will feature all of Mindy's design aesthetics in heart.  This project also counts toward my Dozen Shawls in 20Dozen KAL, effectively as number 3.

Wow!  I'm starting to realize, I knit a lot.  My first clue should have been that weird dream I had in the early hours shortly before the alarm where I was walking down the street seeing stitch patterns appearing in the asphalt beneath me.

And of course, this isn't all that I'm working on.  There are a couple projects in hibernation (always!) including another shawl and a hat.  There is one new pattern design in the swatching department.  And there will forever be projects in my queue.

What are you working on?  What amazing project do you suggest I add to my queue?  Let me know!

Oh yeah, and no, I wasn't paid or asked to review any of the patterns I linked to above (not that I am or would be opposed to such - hint, hint!).  I link to what I love to share great things with you!

Knitting Lace

I love knitting lace almost as much as love knitting cables. I find knitting stockinette stitch boring.  I live for the variety lace and cables provide.  They are visually exciting to look at and most definitely not boring to knit.

Most recently I completed a lovely little FREE pattern I found on Ravelry called 198 yards of Heaven by Christy Verity.  It's knit with worsted weight wool, and in most cases you only need 1 skein.  It knit up very quickly (about 5 1/2 hours) and the pattern provides both written and charted instructions.  This is a great beginner project for individuals looking to try lace.  The finished size is just over neck kerchief and makes a lovely winter accent.

I highly recommend this pattern and look forward to trying more of Christy's patterns.  (This is an unpaid, unsolicited endorsement.)  

Cabled Skirt

I promised I would post a picture of the cabled skirt when it was done.  Here you go.  This was taken during our Thursday night Knit & Crochet group.  Special thanks go out to Charles - you are a dear, and we love to pick on you.  Thank you!

Psst!  That's my friend Kim behind me.  Hi Kim!

A Kool Way to Dye

I did it!  I dyed yarn for the first time, and I love it!  I'm really very excited (in case you couldn't tell).  It was relatively simple, and the results are beautiful.  I've had a lot of emails already asking about my process, so to make life simple, I'll post the details here.  My pictures do not show the colors quite as vibrantly as they really are.

Are there websites or instructions out there?  I wish I had great answers for you. I really don’t. I fudged my way through it.  I searched on YouTube for microwave dyeing yarn with Koolaid. A few videos came up and most of them were other people fudging there way through it too. There was no great formula. There are a couple of methods.

This is what worked best for me:

1. I presoaked my 100% wool in lukewarm water with about 1/4 cup vinegar for 1 hour in large microwavable bowl. Squeeze most of the water out after soaking.
2. I put 2 packets of each color I liked into a glass mason jar - I used pints and quarts - doesn’t matter. Added lukewarm water to each jar to about 3/4 full plus about 2 tablespoons vinegar - for good measure. Stirred well. I put the jars next to the sink on a crappy old “I don’t care if it stains” towel. I advise having it next to or even in the sink so you can easily transfer the whole project into the sink for step 6.
3. I carefully stuffed a section of yarn into each. Yes, there was unexposed yarn that carried over the tops to the next jar - it’s ok.
4. I topped off each jar to just under the screw bands with more lukewarm water and snuck a spoon down in to just stir up a little. (Rinse spoon after each jar to avoid color transfer.)
5. Let it soak - a long time (30-40 min). Really. Be patient. Walk away. Go knit/crochet. Most people/videos will tell you not to do anything until the dye is exhausted (completely soaked in and the water is clear), but I think 2 packets may have been A LOT of dye, cuz mine never did and I dyed the next batch in the same jars. Do what you feel. The dye will soak up into the carry-overs from jar to jar. At about 1/2 soaking time (15-20 min) I shifted the yarn slightly out of one jar and more into another to help the dye bleed into the carry-over - you may choose to leave it natural. You may choose to finish all steps, then go back and dye just those sections in strong contrast. This is a very creative process. There are no rules, which is why there are no steadfast instructions.
6. When the dye has “taken” and you are satisfied with the color depth, transfer jars into sink. Take one dipped end out at a time, laying the yarn in the sink and removing the jar from your work space. When yarn is lying in sink, press water out. Rinse with lukewarm water 2-3 times squeezing out water/dye until mostly clear.
7. Put yarn back into first large microwavable bowl with enough lukewarm water to cover yarn. Microwave on high for 6 minutes. Let cool to room temp. Transfer to sink, drain, rinse again. This time there should be NO dye runoff. If there is, repeat this step. Otherwise, sqeeze as much water out as you can and hang outside or in shower to dry. Done. Fantastico!

Hints:  Be patient. You’ll be really bummed if it felts. Mine didn’t. I think this method is pretty safe as long as you don’t ring the yarn out, just squeeze and press the water out.

Use gloves. I turned my hands BRIGHT pink. IF you should happen to dye your hands, it is good to know that cheap shampoo will get the dye out. Take a shower and wash your hair lavishly and your hands will return to normal in short order.

The vinegar will help the dye soak into and set in the yarn. You don’t have to go nuts with it or even measure. Just add some. White vinegar. Not any other.

Some of the Kool Aid reds mix up in the jars dramatically different, but seem to dye about the same. I used Orange, Cherry and Jamaican Punch for my project. Jamaican looks darker than it comes out. The purples (Grape and Black Cherry) come out kinda grey and crappy. If you want purple go with food coloring. I’ve read a lot of complaints about how hard it is to get good purple.

I hope this helps you. Do it. Go for it. The worst thing that can happen is you’ll felt it or hate your colors. Before you decide you hate the colors, wind it back into a ball and swatch it. I made one small skein that was total Clown Barf - wanted to throw it out. Even over-dyed it. In the end, I wound it into a ball and decided, albeit a little pinker than I’d like, it really was still pretty cool.

If you have dyed wool with Kool Aid or food colors, please let me know how yours came out or if you do anything differently. I’m always open to new ideas and suggestions.

O, also, there is a group on Ravelry dedicated to this: What a Kool Way to Dye  If you aren't yet on Ravelry, really, give it a try.  It's FREE & FUN!

"Twisted Winds" Available

Originally titled "Denise" I've renamed this piece "Twisted Winds" due to its unisex status.  Regardlesss of its name, this hat was inspired by my sister in law, Denise, and her gloriously curly hair (it runs in their family). 

This hat fits Teens, Women and Men, as it will stretch to fit head sizes 20-25”. Very simple cabling techniques make this hat look far more complex than it is, much like the wind whipping about, no matter how it twists, it is still just air. The main body of this hat is knit back and forth, then joined into along cast on and bound off edges. Stitches are picked up along top edge, and crown is knit in the round to close. Pattern is available on my website (MyKnits.com) as well as from Ravelry.com.

"Dittany Sprouts" - Baby Hats

In response to several requests to downsize my Dittany pattern to fit children, I have created Dittany Sprouts!  For this pattern, I again used the Candlelight lace, but changed out the optional embellishments to offer more color and less dangle (a safety consideration).  I'm very excited about how these came out - I think they are simply adorable.  Pattern is available for sale on both my website and Ravelry.com. 

I unfortunately don't have any available models for this hat.  If you happen to have a little one at home that would be willing to model your test knit for my photographic needs, please contact me.



Instant Gratification & Diversion Knitting

Sometimes when you're working on big projects that threaten to burn you out, you just need to do a little diversion knitting and give yourself some instant gratification.  Just a little project, something quick and easy, that breaks up the mind numbing 13" of stockinette stitch the big project requires, makes a big difference in your overall success completing projects.

My solution this time was a modified Pinwheel Purse, originally designed by Frankie Brown (pattern available for Free on Ravelry!)  This project actually killed three birds with one stone.  Not only did it combat my stockinette boredom, it fulfilled my Transfiguration homework, and gave me a cool new way to store my knitting notions!

Magical Inspiration!

Not that I needed inspiration for more designs...

I'm a huge fan of Ravelry.  (If you knit/crochet, and you're not a member, you are missing out.  Join today - it's free and loaded with not only a wonderful community of fellow stitchers & hookers, it has a HUGE library of both free and for fee patterns, and is an incredible resource for techniques, and so, so much more!)  While perusing a friend's completed projects, I ran across a project that had been completed for credit in one of the Ravelry Groups - HP Knitting/Crochet House Cup.  I'm a huge fan of the Harry Potter series. I researched more about this group and decided to join.  Sadly, the sorting had already been done for the winter term, however, late joins are allowed to play along (just not for points).  It's actually a wonderful option and allows you time to learn the ropes.

Basically, it works like this.  You are a student at Hogwarts and you choose your classes.  You can earn credit for up to 6 classes per term.  Each class has homework, and to earn points you must complete a project within the assignment month and turn it in as homework.  Each homework assignment has certain criteria your project needs to fit into to qualify as completed homework. 

I chose to start with an Herbology project.  I read the criteria and used it as inspiration to design a project that qualified.  Much to my delight, a new pattern design quickly emerged.  (Had I not been in the designer mindset, I could have selected a pattern I wanted to complete that fit criteria and done that instead.  That is what most of the players do, and it's a great way to wrangle your WIP's and UFO's.)

And so, "Dittany" was born.

Pattern is in final tech-editing stage and will be made available as soon as it's done.

Christmas Knitting Officially Finished.

I'm officially finished with my Christmas knitting, and honestly amazed it's still December (I've been know to give I.O.U.'s for knitted items).  I love giving handknit items, but I never give myself enough time to actually knit them, and so here it is that I set one of my New Year's Resolutions.

In 2011, I resolve to begin my Christmas knitting in January, and work to complete all gift projects before Thanksgiving, allowing time not only to ship affordably, but to sneak in last minute projects.

My very last project was these socks, made of Paton's Kroy Socks yarn in "Coal".  The pattern was "Mr. Pitt's Socks" by Kaitlyn Wong.  The pattern is available for free on Ravelry.  The recipient of these socks has tried them on and declared them a wonderful fit and very warm.  He will be wearing them proudly Christmas morning.  Thank you Kaitlyn for a fantasic pattern!  I love how you came to name them.