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FelicityGS posted:Seconding baby surprise jacket, I made my very first one for a friends baby and it is a fast and pleasing knit. Thanks! The wife likes the surprise jacket more so I’ll do that one (at least first, the other sweater is really cute too!)
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Mar 12, 2020 01:27
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Anyone quarantine knitting this year? Here's the stuff I've been making since Christmas. I actually made three of these little sweaters for Christmas presents, but I forgot to take photos before I gave them away. Got this cute pic from the recipient, so glad it fit! Pattern is "Barnegenser med lus" from "Lek med tradisjoner" by Kristin Wiola Ødegård. I used Drops Big Merino.  My sister in law wanted a cardigan similar to the one I made for my daughter last year. This is "Bøvertun med rundfelling" from "Kofteboken 1". I added the pattern on the sleeves and the bottom of the jacket, I think it's a nice finishing touch. Made with Du Store Alpakka Mini Sterk.   My daughter grew out of her old cardigan, so I had to make a new one! Just a simple "Mariuskofte", pattern from Sandnes Garn. I used Drops Baby Merino for this one.   I had a lot of leftover yarn from the sorbet cardians I made last year, and I had just enough Drops Air left to make a small No Frills Sweater Junior (from Petite Knit). Love this pattern, I'm currently knitting another one for my daughter, and I'm going to knit one for myself next. 
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Apr 27, 2020 09:49
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Yep! I have one derp/easy knit for when I wanna chill, and one more complex. I'm working on a sea horse pillow and creatures of the reef shawl is next.
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Apr 27, 2020 22:57
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All my quarantine crafting has been of the crochet variety so far, but these amazing knit buildings might change my course
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Apr 27, 2020 23:40
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Midnight Sun posted:Anyone quarantine knitting this year? Here's the stuff I've been making since Christmas. These are gorgeous!!
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Apr 28, 2020 00:49
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jomiel posted:These are gorgeous!! Thank you! 
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Apr 28, 2020 07:39
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I agree - Midnight Sun, those are so beautiful!
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Apr 30, 2020 04:51
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I always love your work too! I love colorwork in general but I'm much too lazy for sweaters
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Apr 30, 2020 06:41
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i like nice words
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Jumping out to say those ARE awesome! I keep thinking I'll make a sweater one day, but it looks intimidating. And I keep thinking I might make another blanket.
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May 2, 2020 23:18
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Those sweaters are beautiful and I’m going to add the cardigan to the bottom of my “I want to knit this” list. My lockdown knitting has gone from super-ambitious to non-existent to slowly, due to a hand injury that prevented me from doing anything until this week. I’ve started working another mermaid lap blanket due to my niece outgrowing her first one. Aerofallosov posted:Jumping out to say those ARE awesome!
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May 3, 2020 00:50
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Thanks, guys! Aerofallosov, you have to give sweaters a try! When you make one, you'll be hooked! And you'll have all the pretty sweaters, and you can make cute presents.
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May 3, 2020 08:02
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I get the idea behind 'support your local yarn store', but all the yarn stores around me are too snobbish to carry the giant ball of red heart the size of my head that i'd get at walmart and that's what i need to refill on right now
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May 24, 2020 21:10
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My friend taught me that almost every yarn has a purpose, and you lose out if you're a yarn snob. Lion's Homeland is amazing for dice bags, while my 100% will 80s explosion yarn makes a better hat. If the yarn needs to be soft, and yet take a beating at the hands of a small child, then I will choose a soft bernat blanket deal or the hay's baby chunky (BETTER THAN THE NAME IMPLIES. NO BABIES CHUNKED) because anything that's gonna be for a little human is gonna need to be machine washed.
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Jun 3, 2020 02:21
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I ... sorta agree, and sorta don't. Being a yarn snob is fine IF you use that knowledge for good. Like... I really hate acrylic and avoid it like the plague UNLESS I am trying to knit something that needs to take a beating (ie. baby stuff, socks) and can be easily laundered. Acrylic's come a long way and is pretty nice sometimes, so I hate it less than usual, haha. But knowing what a "good" yarn is (ie. alpaca, cashmere, merino, etc) and relating it to the thing you're making is just as important. If you make someone you really care about something with the REALLY GOOD YARN (tm) then it just kinda... means more, you know? That you put that knowledge into the creation of a gift. But if you just look down your nose at synthetic yarn because eugh it's not REAL then you're dumb. I can't think of a single person who would want to give their baby the angora sweater you just made them. 
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Jun 3, 2020 04:55
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Not all yarns are suitable for all purposes, but it's fine to have preferences and like things not sold at Michael's. For a washable baby thing, I would use Berroco Vintage, which is a wool/acrylic blend for $7-9/skein -- i.e., not at all fancy but also not Red Heart. There are plenty of superwash wools that can take a beating, too.
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Jun 3, 2020 05:13
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Anne Whateley posted:Not all yarns are suitable for all purposes, but it's fine to have preferences and like things not sold at Michael's. I agree! My problem is that I want to financially support my local yarn stores but only have use for Michael's-tier yarn right now
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Jun 3, 2020 16:11
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There's nothing wrong with that kind of yarn and going to JoAnn's/Michael's. Some places just don't HAVE local yarn stores. We only got one a couple years back. Lion is a very respected yarn brand, and when I contacted them, they were nothing but helpful.
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Jun 6, 2020 03:40
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Is "hank" derived from some obscure old English term for "frustrating piece of tangled poo poo?" I swear I've watched a dozen youtube videos on how to not gently caress up winding a hank into a ball, and I'm still at around a 30% success rate. It's a real shame because some of the nicer yarns come in this garbage form of packaging spawned by Satan himself. I think I've figured out the trick now: just hang the whole thing over the back of a chair, then carefully unwind it. Lying it flat on a table... hoo boy, that did not work at all. I still cannot figure out why anyone would package yarn in this fashion as opposed to literally any other way.
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Jun 10, 2020 05:05
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Snapping it helps, but it shouldn't be that bad to start with. It sounds like something is going wrong. You can use the back of a chair, or your feet or knees in front of you, or someone else's hands, or a swift. But realistically I usually just do it from a flat surface.
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Jun 10, 2020 05:24
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Oh the trick is 100% to buy a cheap folding swift and winder. Winding hanks without them is just a recipe for shitsuck.
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Jun 10, 2020 05:37
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Anne Whateley posted:Snapping it helps, but it shouldn't be that bad to start with. It sounds like something is going wrong. You can use the back of a chair, or your feet or knees in front of you, or someone else's hands, or a swift. But realistically I usually just do it from a flat surface. The first time I did it from a flat surface, I got about 80% of the way through the hank without a tangle. Maybe that got me overconfident. The second time, I got about 30% of the way and managed to untangle my way to about 50% before I realized my time is worth more than the stupid yarn. The third time, it was basically hosed from start somehow, and essentially unrecoverable, and then the fourth time I did the chair method and very carefully unwrapped one loop at a time, and managed to get the whole thing. What I noticed was that it didn't seem "tangled" as such, but at the same time the loops kind of... overlapped each other? so if had them all laying flat on top of each other, it was going to cause a tangle, but hanging it meant I was able to keep everything free from itself. It's Cascade Ultra Pima, if anyone's curious, and some of the reviews I saw mentioned the hanks are wound in a particularly frustrating, tangle-prone way for some reason, but I think now that I've got the trick I should be able to manage. It's not super expensive or anything, so it's not a huge loss (especially considering I only lost 1.5 hanks worth, total -- I untangled the lovely bit from the first skein fully, it's just part of its own ball now), just a bit of a pain in the rear end. I've only knitted a swatch with it so far, but it seems really nice to work with, so hopefully the effort will be worth it.
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Jun 10, 2020 05:47
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elise the great posted:Oh the trick is 100% to buy a cheap folding swift and winder. Winding hanks without them is just a recipe for shitsuck. Thank god it's not just me! By the third fuckup I was wondering if I was some sort of yarn-challenged moron or something. I'd already figured out the winding part from some earlier misadventures regarding striped yarn, in which PT6A learned that just because you buy two cakes of the same striped yarn, it doesn't mean the stripes will be in the same place or the same size on the different cakes! Fun!
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Jun 10, 2020 05:51
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Since I'm unable to borrow the swift at the store I've been balling skeins by hanging them over my arm, pulling the yarn off the side, and going fairly slowly. Laying one flat seems like asking for trouble. For very grippy yarn, this method will let you use your arm as a very cheap swift. For just about anything else you'll probably have to stop and do some funky arm movements at some point, but as long as you see the tangle coming and head it off it's not so bad.
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Jun 10, 2020 06:17
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Definitely, 100% recommend a swift. You don't need an expensive one, personally I prefer the Amish style that sits flat on the table with pegs over the umbrella type because they seem much sturdier to me. It saves your arms and the hassle of unwinding one loop at a time. Ball winders are great but the swift is essential for me.
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Jun 10, 2020 06:58
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PT6A posted:What I noticed was that it didn't seem "tangled" as such, but at the same time the loops kind of... overlapped each other? so if had them all laying flat on top of each other, it was going to cause a tangle, but hanging it meant I was able to keep everything free from itself. PT6A posted:I'd already figured out the winding part from some earlier misadventures regarding striped yarn, in which PT6A learned that just because you buy two cakes of the same striped yarn, it doesn't mean the stripes will be in the same place or the same size on the different cakes! Fun!
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Jun 10, 2020 09:08
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I finished my first sweater from hand spun. It is merino dyed and spindle spun by me. It took a year. I liked it so much I want to do it again! Sweater:  Like 1500 yards of DKish yarn:  I did buy an Electric Eel Nano wheel too. I haven't quite got the hang of it, but I am working with it to get another batch of sweater yarn. What without feeling safe to go anywhere but my back yard, I think I can probably do it by winter. And yeah, yarn barf sucks. I usually loop the hank around my laptop screen and wind into a ball from there.
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Jun 12, 2020 04:41
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Hell yeah, that owns
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Jun 12, 2020 06:04
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HungryMedusa, that's awesome!
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Jun 13, 2020 09:49
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Goddamn, that's impressive. All spindle spun too? Nice. Is it a 2- or a 3-ply? I'm currently spinning for my first handspun sweater as well, but I'm using my wheel. Hoping I'll have enough for the extremely dense sweater I'm planning...
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Jun 13, 2020 22:18
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HungryMedusa posted:I finished my first sweater from hand spun. It is merino dyed and spindle spun by me. It took a year. I liked it so much I want to do it again! Get some sheep and you're ready for the apocalypse in style! That is a gorgeous sweater and your skilled work shines in it.
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Jun 13, 2020 22:28
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Thanks, knitting goons. I remember rolling my eyes when I first saw you can spin your own yarn. I can't get enough of it now! I really do wish I could have a sheep, but they are not allowed here. My current dog has tiny little greasy hairs and they would make a terrible yarn, but if the apocalypse really comes, might as well shave her down and go for it.
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Jun 14, 2020 20:22
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Hassles with hanks aside, now that I've got my yarn wound into a ball, the resulting ball is loving fantastic to work with compared to a giant Bernat yarn ball that rolls around and is a pain in my rear end the entire time, so I guess it's a bit of up-front pain to gain convenience down the road.
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Jun 17, 2020 22:58
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I was gifted a hand me down swift, and man, this thing OWNS. I had a nostepinne for handrolling (yarn) balls, but then I had to use either my legs or a chair to hold it up. I am admittedly, not a fan of hanks when I have to wind them. But man are they pretty.
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Jun 22, 2020 02:48
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In case people only subscribe to this thread, I just wanted to let you know about the new DIY discord that we can use as a backup 1) join https://discord.gg/UuS3ehc 2) get your userid https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/206346498-Where-can-I-find-my-User-Server-Message-ID- 3) post it in this thread https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3929094 Once you're verified, you can see everything going on. I'm hoping there can be a knitting/sewing channel, because I really have a soft spot for this thread
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Jun 25, 2020 16:57
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There's also the Show me your knits! group on Ravelry, I don't know if anyone's still active, though?
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Jun 25, 2020 22:33
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I joined both. The new Ravelry shocked the hell out of me. I read about it on mobile and forgot to check it out. I don't hate it. I forget to visit Ravelry huge chunks at a time. My projects page is so sad.
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Jun 26, 2020 00:15
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Oof. I haven't updated anything on my Ravelry in ages, let alone checked on the group. My most recent FO is from over a year ago, and I've started (and subsequently abandoned) a single project since then. The rest of my UFOs are from 2+ years ago.. 
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Jun 26, 2020 08:36
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Joined Show me your knits! group. That Ravelry site makeover is something else, a bit ugly but still functional. The biggest problem I have is forgetting to take photos of FO because I get all excited to give it to someone. That said I get about 70% of my projects posted on there because it’s the single location I use for almost all my knitting needs.
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Jun 27, 2020 01:55
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Oh neat! Now I can start uploading pictures. The family and I all got our first smartphones. I have a bad habit of starting projects... and I want that 10 stitch blanket going. Hmm.
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Jun 28, 2020 00:56
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I've been on a No Frills Sweater binge lately, I've made two for my daughter and one for myself. The jr ones are in Drops Air and my version is in Drops Baby Alpaca Silk with Drops Kid Silk held together. I love this pattern, such an easy and wearable jumper.  
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Jul 2, 2020 08:57
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