Sunday, June 03, 2007

Samper Stole (row 55 of border)





Still Knitting on the Sampler Stole. I'm up to row 55 of the border and there are 162 rows in all . I don't know if this happens to anyone else, but I find the odd dropped stitch from time to time even though I tug on my lace periodically as I knit to try to catch them early on. It happened on my WRS center and it happened with this one too. You can see it in the top shot at the bottom of the picture. It's the third diamond counting from left to right. I have picked it up and will just have to"tie" it in place and hide the ends. No way am I going to rip back to that point! Once again, not perfect but not too bad. Does anyone out there have any experience with trying to starch Shetland Lace? Sharon Miller had described doing it but if you store the lace, you have to wash it out and re-block it since you don't want the buggies to be attracted to the starch. As if the wool itself was not already an enticing little snack for moths. A word to the wise. If you Xerox /enlarge a chart from a book like I did, don't forget to check for color-coded changes in the chart symbol instructions. This pattern had several and I didn't transcribe them to my copy so I had to pick back a few rows when I realized that my stitch count was off. I should have looked more closely a the "legend" that explains the stitch symbols. In some rows, the symbol for Sl1,K2tog,psso was supposed to be K2tog at the beginning of the repeat so the stitch count would come out correctly. I guess knitting lace is always a learning experience :-) I added a shot of the un-pinned stole center so you can more easily see the color shifting of the yarn. What exactly is it about variegated yarn that has me hooked so bad? After all. Lace shows to better advantage when your eye is not distracted by shifting colors, or so it is commonly believed. Yet I still like those color changes. Guess only time will tell if I am disappointed in the results. Until then, I'm enjoying the knitting. Good Evening to all!

19 comments:

fleegle said...

I can't see the mistake, so you picked it up with some intelligence. It looks fabulous!

Variagated yarn is fun! I love to knit with it, but this is the first time I've seen fine lace that looked good with color changes.

I don't find any dropped stitches from triple decreases, but I use one-step methods that don't require slipping flipping. I do, however, drop plain knit stitches when I am not paying attention. It figures, right?

Lacefreak said...

Dear fleegle,

I'm always dropping the Slip 1, K2tog, psso so maybe I need to try the one-step method too! Of course, maybe something else would go wrong, like dropping when not paying attention. It's possible the errors happen as God's little jest because we presume to knit lace at all? As for the color changes, I wonder if the edging will look good shifting or if I should cut out some of the colors and stick to either the darkest or lightest colors? What do you think?

Monika said...

You wrote that this sampler stole is a "Quick knit" for a shop? Mistakes? With all those holes, you can't see any! I like your lace spun yarn. Beautiful color.

Lacefreak said...

Dear monika,

Since I'm still knitting on The Wedding Ring Shawl by Sharon Miller, and it has been at least 10 months that I've been knitting on that one, this definately is a "Quick Knit" for me :-) I'm glad you like the yarn as well that I spun. I have no idea how long it took to fill that bobbin with 4 ounces since I only infrequently spin. Not good light after I get home from commuting so I mostly spin on the weekend for a few minutes. I checked your site as well and you have very lovely spinning and you knit very well!

missalicefaye said...

I failed the "find the dropped stitch" challenge, too, so I think you've fixed it pretty well. :) It seems that this colorway is subtle enough to pull off using a variegated yarn for such fine lace--it really is beatiful!

I've never attempted starching lace--I'm just sure I'd make a big clumpy mess of it all...

Kathy said...

Jane, as always your work is fabulous, I like variegated yarns too, but the one you are using here is beautiful, probably the best fitted variegated for lace. I have infact been wandering around the yarn place online store.......


I love your pictures of tatting, that is the one skill I have never mastered, I can do it, and slowly, but I feel like I have no patience with it, probably becasue it is taking away from the knitting.

LittleBerry said...

I too cannot find the mistake, so you've made an excellent job of picking it up.... I think the variegated works well because the colours aren't too strong and it is a gentle shading...

I look forward to your posts & enjoy reading them....

Anonymous said...

WOW, that's gorgeous work!

Opal said...

It looks perfect to me!

FUZZARELLY said...

Okay, I found the mistake but I had to really look hard!

I can't imagine knitting an entire item in only one color. I would die from boredom, I'm sure.

I prepare my own fiber (usually a mix of merino, angora and silk) and like to blend colors on the drum carder, a la Deb Menz. I use one unifying color and add in a variety of colors. That, and a single shade of silk for plying, creates a delicious yarn for lace.

Sometimes I strive for lots of color and other times I want something more subtle. I don't think it interferes with the lace pattern at all.

Your mileage, of course, may vary.

Laritza said...

The mistake could be easily missed. I do get drop stitches from time to time when three stitches are involved. Now I tug on those right after I do them with my left hand to make sure I have them right. As for the yarn I like the variation in color. I think that because they are all "soft" pastel colors the change is not dramatic and it does not take away from the lace. It is lovely that is for sure. I am knitting one of the Three corners book in variegated yarn the color changes are sharper. At this moment it is a little bag of yarn so I have yet to find out if I like it or not. I guess I should take some pictures. Oh starch I have used starch on mercerized cotton but not on wool. My WRS is knit with Shetland and the yarn has a stiffness to it that replaces the starch by itself. I would not push my luck with starch on wool!

Lacefreak said...

Dear missalicefaye,

No starch for you? I admit I've never done it and I'm sort of reluctant to give it a try myself. I think that once the lace is stretched out, the colors look pretty good to me but in a clump I sometimes get anxious. I'm a little concerned with houw the edging will look since it goes on sideways and could end up with weird color blocks going around the stole. I maye restrict to a section of color and cut out all the other colors. What think you?

Lacefreak said...

Dear alisonh,

Thank you! Nice to get a Wow anytime! I have your book on pre-order :-)

Lacefreak said...

Dear Kathy,

I only get just so far with tatting and then I just can't move forward. Maybe not enough interest in it for the larger examples of lace. I lack commitment! Of course, maybe that's a good thing since I barely have time to spin and to knit as it is:-) I'm happy you are enjoying the pictures.

Lacefreak said...

Dear littleberry,

I liked the gentle shifts in color too. It's kinda hard to tell since these are in balls and the colors ended up being darker on the inside of the ball where I couldn't see. I guess that's why shop examples could be useful. It's reassuring that you like the colrs too since I've made mistakes with varigated yarns in the not so distant past. My Peacock Shawl still sits in it's little container whines that its "too loud" for real beauty. Like the wrong clothes at a formal dinner. I don't know what the hell I'm going to do about that problem. Thank you for your response to the old blog. I'm happy you were able to check in on me!

Lacefreak said...

Dear Opal,

I'm glad it looks good to you! I normally don't worry too much when I screw up, but having an example of my mistakes up in a shop makes me break out into hives. I went back and re-did it because the sharp eyed "fuzzarelly" could still see it. It's better now so I guess I can heave a sigh of relief and move on. I can live with some imperfections :-) Good to hear from you!

Lacefreak said...

Dear Laritza,

Ah yes, the "bag" of yarn where you can't see the lace pattern yet. I know it well. I guess I will just have to keep looking for errors. I blocked my swatch for the WRS and it blocked out fine so no starch for that one. The Sampelr Stole I'm not so sure about.

fleegle said...

Dear Jane--

I jusr caught up on your commments to my comments. I think you should continue the edging with the variation. A solid color would be a bit startling and cause the eye to be "caught" at the edging. Just my opinion, though.

Lacefreak said...

Dear fleegle,


Maybe if I just use the varigated sections that are lighter in color? That way it still shifts but not as sharply? I think the dark sections would also draw the eyes too much. I think I will knit a section of edging as an experiment and just hold it up to the body and see. You may be more correct than I in what to do. We will just have to get there first!