The ‘fruit salad’ shawl finished

It's got a bit cooler (thank goodness), but it's still not really the weather for standing in the sun wearing something woolly! But I have finished my Dandelion Air shawl, so it must be recorded.

Yes, I was a bit warm!

There's not a lot to say that I haven't said already. The pattern is a simple six-row repeat, and I just kept going until I judged that I should stop.

Yarn Chicken time, had I left enough?

The pattern has an i-cord bind off, but I chose to do picots instead. I did insert a lifeline a couple of rows before the bind off, so I could rip it all back if necessary.

Phew, yes I had

It blocked larger than I was expecting; the overall area is a fair bit more than my Close to You shawl, which is made from the same yarn.

Showing the full size

When I first started knitting, I knew very little about yarn choice beyond weight. It was pure luck that I chose to knit my Dahlia shawl in a yarn with a very subtle colour variation, which allowed the lace design to be the star of the show.

The Dahlia yarn - mostly blue, a little black

This yarn is far more variegated however, and definitely needed quite a plain design to show off the colours. The Dandelion Air pattern was perfect for the job.

Reds and yellows and pinks, oh my!

The pattern lets the colours shine

It must be said that it's not my neatest work. In particular the tension in the centre spine stitches varies hugely.

That's a lot of different stitch sizes

It gets better further down

It's not surprising, really. A lot of this was knitted while I was visiting Mum, either in hospital or the nursing home, so it regularly got put down mid-row as I attended to something. But for all that, I do associate knitting it with the laughter and happy conversations we had over those last months rather than the more fraught times. I'm certainly glad that I chose to use up such a cheery yarn from my stash at that point in our lives.

More swatching

When will I ever learn? Needless to say, describing fixing the damaged cushions at my local community café as a "'little' job" turned out to be tempting fate. More damaged cushions have sprung up like mushrooms, and despite the kind help of one of the other regular attendees, there are still several to do. Getting on with the toile has been shelved until this is done, but I did find time for a bit of knitting.

I knitted up a second swatch for my 1915 shawl, this time using 4.5mm needles, which equate to U.S. size 7/old UK size 7. Unsurprisingly, when blocked it came out larger than the swatch knitted on 4mm needles.

4mm swatch on top of 4.5mm one

It also felt, and looked, like a far more open knit. As the pattern states that "Closeness of texture is the feature which makes this a generally useful shawl", I decided to stick with the 4mm/size 8 needles specified in the pattern, even though the swatch produced felt rather chunky.

Then I had the genius idea of trying to re-block the 4mm swatch to the gauge listed on the yarn label instead of just randomly stretching it! (I know, I know - I wasn't at all at my brightest when I first blocked it, so never thought about this). I marked out a 22 stitch and 28 row section, calculated the likely dimensions of a 33 stitch and 57 row swatch blocked to gauge as a belt-and-braces approach, and set to work.

Slightly different shape!

Blocked to the right size, the swatch has a thickness far more suitable for a shawl. It also retained its size and shape after handling, so I am confident that this is the right degree of blocking.

Once I knew this, I could consider the dimensions of the completed shawl. No size information is provided in the pattern, except that it should be knitted until it is 50" long, and then a further 45 rows knitted. This would equate to 56½"/ 144cm, which feels like a reasonable length for a shawl. However, the pattern is 219 stitches wide. In the gauge for my wool, this is 40"/100cm. Given that I am 64" tall, a shawl which would cover almost ⅔ of my height seems a bit excessive.

I folded a remnant to 100 X 144 cm to get an idea of the size. Obviously, fabric drapes differently from knitting, but it confirmed that this would be a big shawl. When I checked, I discovered that it's actually the size of my bath towels rather than anywhere close to my existing shawls.

So much fabric

It almost reaches down to my knees

Something that size was also going to use a lot of wool, and be quite heavy as a result. I wondered if the Capstan yarn suggested for the pattern was thinner than my DK wool, and so would produce a narrower shawl from 219 stitches. Combing through the booklet which contains the pattern for any clues, I found a section on the different Beehive products. Capstan was listed in the section of Soft Knitting wools. These were described as "4-ply yarns which are more tightly twisted than Fingerings", and of the four types available, Capstan was "slightly thicker". Double Knitting was a separate section, and described as "a thick 4-ply Fingering".

Unless I come across a skein of teens era Capstan yarn for sale somewhere, I guess I will never know for certain. But given that old yarns are generally regarded as being thicker than the modern equivalents (Lister Lee DK is described as more of current Aran weight, for example) and also the needle size of 4mm, modern DK still seems like the best choice for the project. So I will simply work out what width I want the shawl to be, and cast on accordingly.

Even so, it's still going to use a fair amount of yarn - more than will fit in one of the repurposed totes I use for my shawl projects. The clear-out which brought the Dress of Frump back to my attention also unearthed a cute but long-forgotten length of craft cotton and today, as a break from the endless cushion repairs, I made a new (lined, of course) project bag for the occasion.

Complete with wool

Another metre used

Hopefully I will be able to finally start on the shawl soon.

Swatching the shawl

I have tried a few bits of sewing this week, but of course whenever I automatically reach for my phone to take a snap to show Mum, it brings me up short. So it has felt safer to concentrate on knitting for a while. Even then, I don't fully trust my powers of concentration (drying a plate and putting it away - in the fridge - is just one example of why!) so for now I'm sticking to the low stakes effort of swatching a new knitting project. As this is going to require a few samples, it is keeping me occupied for a while.

I have picked up my historical knitting project, a shawl from this 1915 booklet.

Shawl and booklet

It is described as having a border of plain knitting and a centre "worked in a simple vest pattern". I have no idea what a vest pattern might be, but it is definitely simple - only four rows long, and worked in alternating blocks of three knit or purl stitches. What there is not, however, is any indication of tension. It's knitted on size 8 needles, which equate to 4mm/U. S. size 6, and was to be knitted in 'Capstan' wool.

4mm needles suggest DK yarn, and I found this 100% Blue Faced Leicester in my local wool shop, in a shade which seemed suitable for a teens era shawl.

Emu Gold in shade Slate Fell

Supplies were very limited, so I bought a skein in a different shade for swatching experiments. First, I knitted a stocking stitch swatch, just to check the gauge. It came out a little bit large once blocked, but that's not a problem for a shawl.

First swatch - almost no concentration required

Next, I knitted a sample using the stitches for the actual shawl - a plain border and a patterned centre. It soon became obvious that when I changed from knit to purl stitches, there was a gap.

Laddering to the left of the knit blocks

I found this article on how to fix the problem by knitting the first purl stitch with the yarn passed opposite way round the needle than normal.

Examples

It fixed the laddering, but seemed to transfer the problem from the first purl stitch to the last knit stitch instead, so I'm not sure if it's worth pursuing.

Wonky knit stitches instead of laddering

The stitches did even out a bit when blocked. I wasn't aiming for a specific size, I just stretched it what seemed a reasonable amount but not excessive.

This is the only shot which shows the wool colour accurately

The vest pattern is the same on both sides, just the columns are reversed.

Both sides of the swatch

The finished piece feels quite thick, especially when folded double like the illustration of the shawl. The yarn also feels thicker than any DK I have used previously, but that might be because it is wool rather than synthetic or mixed fibres. I couldn't find any information about Capstan yarn as far back as 1915, but it does seem to have been an Aran weight yarn from at least the 1960s. Certainly the name suggests sturdy knitwear for seafarers! Aran yarn on 4mm needles would surely have produced a very dense knit.

Having drawn a blank on 1915 yarn, I turned to Ravelry to see how other people are using my own yarn choice. There are currently three shawls knitted in Emu Gold on there, one knitted on 4mm needles and two knitted on 4.5mm. So my next step is to knit another patterned sample, but this time on 4.5mm needles. I can also try to improve my vest pattern knitting while I’m knitting it. Thank goodness I bought that extra skein!

Repeats and alterations

Only time for a very quick post this week. As I mentioned last week, I'm currently in the situation of having time on my hands but unable to start a new sewing project. The obvious solution is knitting, so I have started a new Confidette bolero.

I have yarn for three different options, and decided to make the navy one with off-white contrast. Mainly because I have a couple of sleeveless summer dresses in navy and dark blue, and a bolero-style cardigan would greatly increase the times I could wear them.

The swatch

So far, I have knitted the top of the back and the fronts, and joined them together.

It's impossible to stop it from curling

Having worn the blue version quite a lot, I want to make an alteration to the pattern for this version. The back and front of the bolero are knitted to the same length. This means that, on me at least, it looks shorter at the front because - boobs.

Showing a slight rise at the front

When it's worn for any length of time it tends to slide back a bit*, which makes the front rise up even more (please excuse the bad mirror selfies).

Over time it gets worse

Much worse

So my plan is to add some short rows to the fronts, to lengthen them in the centre. I'll knit the sleeves and part of the front before I do this, so that I can try it on and get a reasonable idea of how much extra I need. I'm not entirely certain how this is going to work but, even if I continue to have lots of knitting time, it will be a while before I have to make any decisions.

* - Meanwhile I'm hoping that this cute vintage sweater clip, found online and waiting for me when I got home today, will add a little weight and hold the bolero front in place.

#FoundInOxfam

More from the eighties

I haven't become obsessed with the decade, honestly. It's just that I’ve found another 1980s item which is relevant to this blog.

A while ago, I bought a number of issues of Vogue Pattern Book at auction. I didn't have the time to go through them properly when they arrived, but last week I finally did. And discovered that the lot included a couple of issues of Vogue Knitting, including this one.

Autumn/Winter 1984 issue

From reading the very small print (literally so, I had to use a magnifying glass!) I discovered that this was not the magazine I'd posted about previously. In 1968, Vogue Pattern Book was published by Butterick, but Vogue Knitting was still part of Condé Nast. At some point Vogue Knitting must have ceased publication, and was then relaunched in 1982 by Butterick. Butterick appears to have bought more than just the name from Condé Nast, as each issue includes a pattern which has previously appeared in the magazine.

From the Fall/Winter 1965 issue

Vogue Pattern Book always had a British edition, containing advertisements and occasionally some editorial from the UK, and the original Vogue Knitting was the same. The new version however was purely a US publication. This had clearly led to complaints from readers in other countries, who couldn't get the yarn required for the patterns - hence the reference on the cover to the "international yarn buying guide".

A lot of the designs are very 1980s. Both in patterns in the magazine and advertisements for wool companies.

Two patterns . . .

. . . and two advertisements

As with the pattern book, there are some useful 'how to' articles, including cable knitting and how to size up a pattern. I was less convinced by the piece on the new (and I suspect, short-lived) trend of 'condo' knitting, done one 19mm and one 4.5mm needle.

The 'condo' pattern

There are some patterns I like, however. I have seen this somewhere else recently, and had no idea that it was from the 1980s.

I'd never wear something like this, but I like it

And then I turned a page, and found this.

Looks familiar

It's the jumper which had appeared in the Autumn 1984 issue of Vogue Patterns, which I blogged about here. I wrote in that post that I was rather taken with it and might need to look out for the issue of Vogue Knitting.

I could remember where I'd seen this before

Because this is a 1980s magazine rather than a 1940s one, the pattern is given in several sizes, so I don't need to refer to that article on sizing up. There's even a handy schematic, so I can work out how to shorten the design to fit me.

All the information you need

Of course, this is entirely hypothetical at present. My ability to find things I want to knit vastly exceeds the speed at which I actually knit. But it's good to know that I now have the pattern.

Where you find it

I am back to hospital visiting on an almost daily basis, and when that is finished, I will be spending a lot of time visiting my mum at home. Dressmaking isn't the most portable of pastimes, so I can see a lot of knitting getting done. (It's a good job I have a few projects planned!)

I've been working away on my Dandelion Air shawl over the last few weeks, even taking it with me when I go to visit Mum, and squeezing in a cheeky row or two while we chat. (Annoyingly, the train journey is far too bumpy for knitting - note to Transport for Wales: please fix this!) Initially the colourway of the yarn reminded me of carousel horses, but knitted up it's more like a particularly jaunty fruit salad. Either way, it's nice to be working with something so bright and cheery just now.

On a circular needle - I did learn from my past mistake!

Several of the other ladies on Mum's ward knit, so they were keen to see what I was up to. One was especially taken with my yarn holder.

It rotates as you pull on the yarn

It's meant to hang from the wrist, but I found it a bit of a distraction there so I push it up towards my elbow, which is perfect. When I'm at home, I hang it from my work lamp. Mine came from the annual yarn fair in Port Sunlight, but I have since found them for sale online.

Because the work in progress prompted so much interest, I ended up wearing my Reyna, Close to You and Blue Dahlia shawls on different visits. None of my friends knit, so it was lovely to have an opportunity to chat about all things woolly with some other knitters, albeit in unexpected circumstances.

Something new

I have an entirely new project in mind. It's a long time since I've done any historical sewing, and I would definitely like to get back to it. Completing my 1986 dress has reminded me just how much I can get done, if I put my mind to it, and how satisfying it is to really work on something. So I'm hoping to get back into the Historical Sew Monthly this year.

I've discovered that despite the name, knitted projects are also allowed. This may have always been the case, but when I last made something for the HSM I wasn't a knitter, so possibly I just didn't notice.

Historical knitting is a whole new rabbit hole for me to fall down! And happily, there's lots to investigate. In particular, I've discovered the Antique Pattern Library - a mind-boggling collection of patterns for all sorts of crafts, and free to access.

It also gives publication dates, which is how I know that this booklet dates from 1915. I was thinking of making a teens era ensemble anyway, so this definitely caught my eye.

At 68 pages, it's a substantial 'booklet'

There is an initial chapter on the basics of knitting and crochet, along with information on different types of wool. This includes "vest wool" and "petticoat wool", as well as a variety of different types of 4-ply. The subsequent chapters cover different types of knitted and crocheted items, with an illustration for each chapter. There are lots of items for babies and children, but chapter six is "Waistcoat, shawls, jackets and spencer".

The items in chapter six

Most of the shawls are crocheted, which is a new skill too far for me. But one is knitted.

Close-up of the knitted shawl

A quick skim through the instructions suggests that it's within my capabilities. There's still lots to work out in terms of yarn choice etc, but historical knitting, here I come!

We interrupt this programme

Yes, I am continuing to work on Butterick 3794 - I have a deadline for it, after all - but only when I'm at home. When I'm at my mum's, I knit. And, courtesy of a lot of time spent sitting in an armchair chatting and knitting, I have finally finished my slate Wondrella!

Woohoo!

I started this project over two years ago, in November 2023. Given that I had managed to knit both my blue and aloe Wondrellas in the preceding nine months, that's a very long time for one cardigan. I got distracted by other projects, and possibly I was just a bit Wondrella'ed out. But since I picked it up again in October, I've kept at it.

I eventually got to the end of the second sleeve, and I even knitted the cuff ribbing as p1, k1 instead of k1, p1, so that the way the rib meets the end of the cable would be the same on both sleeves! Obviously, no-one will know this but me, but it makes me happy.

Why yes, I am a nerdy completist, how did you guess?

Partway through knitting the fronts, I had begun to wonder how much wool this version would use (and it has used a fair bit more than the previous two), and I thought it best to buy an extra ball. Because it was so long since I bought the original yarn, of course it was a different dye lot. The base colour was the same, but there were clearly more coloured flecks in it. So I decided to knit the neck band and button bands last, in the hope that if I had to use a slightly different yarn it would be less noticeable than changing halfway down a sleeve. After the endless knitting of the sleeves, the bands came together very quickly - and I did have enough of the original yarn.

Slightly blurred (sorry) neck band pic

Buttons. Regular readers (thank you) will know the trouble which button choice always causes me. This time however, it seemed to be straightforward, as I had a whole tube of the perfect buttons for the job - bought years ago at a flea market for pennies. But of course, it was more complicated than that. The seemingly identical buttons ranged from light grey to almost black.

Lighter or darker?

In the end, I went for the lighter buttons. As with the previous versions, I backed the button and buttonhole bands with grosgrain ribbon.

And here, at last, is the finished item being worn. I tapered the lengthened the sleeves too early, so they are quite close-fitting towards the cuffs, but I have no intention of any reknitting! It proved impossible to get any photos which showed the cable detail clearly, so the picture at the top of this post will have to serve as proof that it is on there!

The cable is barely visible

This project was a lot of work; I had to write out the pattern for the fronts line by line, and then alter it in stages to insert the cable instructions. (I'm sure there must be an easier way, feel free to comment!) But I'm delighted with the end result, and proud of myself for achieving it.

Part of my rewritten pattern and notes

That I could do it at all was due to Tasha, the designer of Wondrella. She creates such clear, well-written patterns that I had a strong basis to work from, and that is why this mad idea of a still newish knitter worked. Thanks, Tasha.

Reyna update

First of all, I must say a huge thank you to everyone who reached out to me after last week's post. As clearly many of you know yourself, caring for a parent can feel quite isolating at times, so your kind comments and messages of support meant a great deal to me.

Despite saying last week that a) I wasn't expecting to post many completed projects and b) fixing the mesh section of my Reyna shawl was going to be a major operation, here I am with . . . a completed Reyna. Clearly I should stick to sewing and knitting, and not branch out into fortune telling! To be fair, I was unwell at the start of the week (I suspect it may have been my body's way of forcing me to have a rest), and couldn't do much but sit quietly and knit.

The error which required fixing was nothing to do with the pattern. It was entirely self-inflicted, and due to my fondness for working on straight needles. Even when I had only reached rows of around 125 stitches, the work was starting to look a bit bunched up in places.

This is not going to end well

But I continued regardless, squashing the stitches up more and more. Naturally, the inevitable happened - a stitch slipped off a needle, and because it was in the mesh section, I couldn't work out how to pick it up correctly. My first attempt to fix it went badly, and my second attempt was even worse! The project got dumped in the Naughty Corner, and I seriously considered frogging the lot.

Eventually I decided to have one last go at a rescue effort. The first thing to do was accept the inevitable, and transfer the stitches onto a circular needle. Even on a 100cm circular, the almost completed shawl was bunched in places; there is no way that I could have knitted the whole thing on 35cm long needles.

Note to self - learn from your mistakes!

I knew that I needed to unravel back to before the dropped stitch, but I still had the problem that I didn't know how to do this accurately or what the end result should look like. So I turned to what I can only describe as 'stunt knitting'. Like its namesake, stunt knitting does the difficult bits so that the star of the show - in this case my limited supply of 'good' yarn - doesn't have to. I dug some leftover DK out of my stash, and knitted up a quick mesh sample on 6mm / US size 10 needles. This created large stitches, so I could see the structure properly, and I could undo and reknit it until I really understood what I was doing.

Stunt knitting, wrong and right sides

I unpicked several rows of the shawl (not fun, at more than 200 stitches per row) until I was sure that I had reached a row which was entirely correct, and started knitting again. And to my relief, this time it worked. From there it was plain sailing. I've discovered that long rows of k2tog aren't my favourite thing (although I'm fine with ssk), but the mesh pattern it produces is simple but effective, and really allows the colours in the yarn to shine.

Close-up of the mesh

I added a few extra rows of garter stitch at the end to use up the full skein of yarn. I ended up with a shawl which is 93cm / 36½" along the shorter sides, and 1g of wool left over from a 100g skein.

Blocking the completed shawl

Draped over my shoulders to show the full size

Realistically, I'm more likely to wear it wrapped round my neck.

It's a useful size

And would work well over a coat, too

Although when I'm wearing a shawl with my pinafore dress, I have been known to tuck the ends in like a fichu.

Going (very loosely) eighteenth century

I'm so glad that I persevered with this, and didn't just frog it. I still see myself as a beginner knitter, maybe inching towards intermediate, but every time I manage to fix a problem like this it feels that I am another step forward on my knitting journey.