Knitting nancy WIP

I don't blog much right now due to work etc, but that doesn't mean I'm completely abandoning any creative pursuits. Here's one example of what I've been dabbling with the last weeks. After seeing many pretty hexafish rubber band bracelets, I of cause had to give it a try. Using my old knitting nancy (the old-fashioned kind made from a thread spool and some nails) rather than any new, plastic rainbow loom -- no need to spend money on stuff like that when you can make similar tool very easily using stuff from around the house.

Anyway, this is my try at a simple technique. I've also done a double foxtail chain using a crochet needle and, based solely on this pic (no, not the video, the piccy), a three-colour chain on my newest -- and messiest looking -- knitting nancy made from a small plastic wire spool.

It's a bit of a tight squeeze, a slightly larger hole would've been better as I worry that the rubber bands will wear against the wood. It's filed smooth, but still... As long as you're not using more rubber bands, making thicker weaves, it works. Just barely, but it works.

Here's a view from above. Should've taken a photo when working with three colours  (one row of each) as it makes a very pretty pattern while you're working.

More loom knit swatches

Ok, I'll soon stop posting loom knitted pieces as they'll not that exciting. Promise more jewellery, cats, flower and landscape photos etc soon, you know, the stuff the blog's supposed to be about. It's about every craft I try too, of cause, but it's jewellery, cats and photos that I enjoy the most personally -- and I feel like I've been away from jewellery making and beading a little too long now. (Just too bad I'm fascinated by dried flower jewellery right now and it's totally the wrong season to find any good materials in the garden or forest -- and I want to make it more personal by using material from the farm.)

The main reason I'm mostly playing with the knit loom now is that first I needed a scarf and in researching loom knitting techniques I got hooked, had to find out how many different stitches there were etc. It's also about convenience: it's even easier to loom knit than bead or embroidery sitting in bed, being all cozy under two thick blankets and with a bunch of cats surrounding me. Perfect place to be when it's cold and windy outside! (Also, with no kittens and lazy adult cats who are more or less hibernating during winter, there's no problem with yarn chases or cats jumping on your work etc.)

And so that's why I made this piece, which is just a square of chenille yarn. Same yarn as this, but instead of the usual e wraps, I used the figure 8 stitch this time. Or, at least half of the time as I was working back and forth and couldn't make the stitch work when going from right to left. So every other row is e wraps.

The swatch is made on my large loom. Yes, the one that looks like this right now. I just started this piece on top of the half-made cushion and it worked for me, the other knitting wasn't in the way at all when just making a smaller piece like this.

My plans for tonight is probably just feed the cats and get back into the warm bed and find something to do there. Perhaps start the only thing on my loom knit to-do list right now: a pair of matching wrist warmers matching my scarf. Just need to calcute if I have enough yarn left. Or "calculate", it's more measuring the yarn, loom until I have used half the yarn see how far it'll get me. Knitting doesn't get more casual than that.

Bicoloured loom knit sampler -- part 2

I've made a new sampler while figuring out if it'll be possible to get yarn to finish my cushion (see last post) or if I need to add another colourway (that doesn't match). Did the same mistake as last time by working late at night and thinking I'll remember exactly how I did the different stitches... Some tests didn't work out so I'm just going to show the parts that were successful, not the whole sampler.

 First of all, I learned the figure 8 stitch. Above you can see it done in orange yarn to the left and mixed orange and purple yarn to the right.

 I also made a variation making a row of figure 8 stitch (orange) followed by a row of basic knit stitch (e wrap, purple).

 I then made yet another variation of basic knit stitch (e wrapped). Let's see if I remember... I made a row of orange and then added purple to every other peg (odd numbers) followed by a row of purple with orange on half the pegs (even numbers). At its best, it gives you a fun pattern as the one you can see on the left side.

 The last thing I tried was making some sort of lacy pattern. I'd seen a YT video about eyelet stitch, but couldn't remember how it was made. So I just made up something, inspired by something faintly remembered from another loom knit video, trying to create a pattern making alternately big and small gaps. You can see the pattern a bit better when stretching out the knitting a bit, like below.

 Personally, I prefer the wrong side of it.

And, yes, I'm doing this without a basic knowledge of knitting vocabulary -- something I realised could be a problem when finding a beginner-intermediate knit loom pattern using knitting abbreviations and when learning that stockinette stitch means slätstickning, which I've of cause heard of but just barely knew what it was. So far, however, my knitting analphabetism isn't a problem, I'm just playing around and don't worry too much about advanced patterns or learning about yarn weights or anything. It's fun, it's easy -- and I'm not that interested in learning to knit as I'm content knowing how to crochet and french knit, so that's enough for me.

A minor case of yarn shortage

Well, getting the knit loom out turns out to perhaps be one of my more successful attempts at stash busting. Unfortunately, I've already run out of yarn. Or, well, I've run out of a yarn, sitting here with what's supposed to be half a soft throw cushion. The yarn ran out before getting half way.

You see, I mostly use my yarn stash for jewellery making and embroidery, projects where I rarely use more than a few metres. Even when I was a kid doing crochet, calculating how much yarn was needed wasn't an issue: either I made tiny doilies using thin crochet thread that lasted forever or I made granny squares, happily mixing whatever yarn leftovers I could find. So the idea of calculating how many skeins of yarn you need for a project and buy that amount (and check for dye lot numbers to avoid colour issues) is pretty unknown to me. Add to that the fact I don't usually use such bulky yarn, making it even harder for me to estimate how long it would last.

In this case, I used a cheap yarn that I bought solely for its softness. It wasn't bought with any specific project in mind, nor did I even glance at how much yarn each skein contained. And because of that I'll now have a WIP attached to my knit loom until I can get another skein of that yarn. Not even sure if they still sell it, at least in this colourway, but that's plan A. Plan B will be to finish it with another yarn of the same type, but in a not exactly matching colourway, that's in the stash. Fingers crossed plan A will work. And that soon as I can't start a new project using the loom until the first one is finished.

Bicoloured loom knit sampler

Ever since I finished my (almost Radiant Orchid) scarf, I've wanted to play more with my knit looms. Just wish I had a couple in a different size or at least a straight one too, but they're a tad expensive for just some plastic (bought mine on sale, 50 % off) so I might have to give it a go with some sort of DIY solution. Or maybe try and find someone who's tired of her looms and want to give them away?

As I don't need more scarves, nor really any more wristwarmers, and I'm not sure I need a new hat, I ended up focusing on just learning new stitches or variations on the basic stitch instead. Don't know how others feel about it, but personally I think making samplers is fun. (And as with doodling, you don't have to make up a design nor focus on creating a finished result as it's just all about learning and enjoying the process.)

One of the things I wanted to try was alternating between two colours and so I picked up two cheap acrylic yarns from my stash and make this sampler. The yarns aren't exactly the same weight (=thickness), but they work well together. The purple yarn is a solid colour while the thicker, autumnal orange yarn is variegated.

In hindsight, a smart idea would've been to add little tags for each section while still remembering the different variations I tried. Didn't do that as I went through the sampler a couple of times last night and had no problem remembering. That was, however, at close to 2 AM so my judgement may have been a bit clouded and now I'm slightly uncertain about a few of the rows, but I will still try my best a walk you through the variations tried last night. As it was mostly just playing around with the basic knit stitch, I'm not sure if the stitches have any official names. I will just call them by how they're done -- if you know a real name for any of the stitches, please feel free to mention so in a comment below.

 Now, let's look at the whole sample from the beginning. Note that you can click on the two photos of the sampler (the pics with numbers on them) for a close up.

1. First thing I wanted to try was vertical stripes, which you create by alternating between two yarns: every other peg purple and inbetween that orange. Tried two versions, but you can't really see a difference between them in the finished piece.

2. Over to simple horizontal stripes. Just simple one row of purple followed by a row of orange and so on.

3. 1 over 2 variation. Still alternating between the two colours for every row.

4. As above, but 1 over 3.

5. Knitting with doubled thread. Basic knit stitches.

1. Double thread.

2. Horizontal rows with 2 rows of purple followed by 2 rows of orange. First I tried a basic stitch (left) and then 1 over 2 (right) as it was easier to remember which colour to use for the new row.

3. Orange with purple accents made by adding additional loops of purple yarns on every second or third peg on every other row. Hard to see as the orange yarn sometimes almost fully cover the purple yarn (see photo below).

4. Checkered made by doing vertical stripes using basic stitches, but after two rows changing the colours (orange yarn on "purple" pegs and vice versa).

5. Checkered 2x2 as above, but using 1 over 2 stitch. Again, easier to remember when to change colour when always having two loops on each peg when starting a new row.

6. Checkered like in 5, but changing colours every row instead of every other row.

7. Basic knit stitch, but skipping every other peg so a lacy pattern is made.

Just a close-up of the part with purple accents where you better can see the purple stitches blended into the orange knitting.

The last checkered pattern might at first glance look similar to the horizontal stripes (1over 2), but when looking closer you can see that the stitches are offset in the checkered pattern. But there is also a difference you can't really see in the photos: the checkered pattern is slightly thicker as there's more yarn on the back (or, in the case of tubes like this, the inside).

So what's next? I was tempted to try three colours last night, but opted to focus on just two first. So three colour variations might be the next step. I also want to learn a few other stitches -- after all I've never done something as simple as making a purpl stitch! Should probably abandon my tactic to watch a how-to YT video, believe it seemed easy and I now know how to do it, just to go to another room (and house), pick up my loom and realise I forgot a crucial step... Don't like to sit and work in the computer room and I guess I'm more of a book person anyway...

As for the sampler, I'll just hang on to it and use it as a reference, perhaps adding the aforementioned tags. My sis wondered if I made a snake, but I think knitted snakes look better when just changing colours/yarns and not when mixing stitches as the width varies so it'd look like a snake digesting an oddly shaped prey.

WIP scarf update

Oh, I wish I had finished the scarf last night because it turned out it could've been useful today. But it's still on the planning stage as I did try a few variations last night, as you can (perhaps) see above.

First I tried "1 over 2", the stitch where you make an extra row of loops and then pull the bottom loop over two loops on the peg instead of one. Probably have a fancier name, but I don't know it. Then there's a few rows of basic knitting just for reference and then I finished by trying to make a figure 8 stitch (weaving the yarn back and forth between the pegs instead of looping around them). That I won't do again as the yarn kept slipping of when weaving it and then I dropped a stitch in the middle and it was just ruined. To conclude, just very basic stitches since that's all I know how to do, but partially also because you don't see the detail of intricate knits when using eyelash yarn so there's no reason to put time into a pattern that can't be seen.

Don't know if you can see the switch between knits even as it's such a furry yarn. The "1 over 2" is to the right and the 8 stitch is just the last few rows on the left. It's easier to see the difference between the two denser stitches and the basic knitting when backlit so I put the test swatch on a lamp so you can see the open structure (gaps if you prefer) of the basic knit part.

Flipping it over to show the backside might also help as you can see more of a ribbed texture where I stitched 1 over 2 (left) and a faintly visible wavy texture where knitted in figure eights (right).

The big problem, however, is that now that I tried that "over 2" stitch, I can't decide whether I want to use that, which creates a nice thick knit, or the basic knitting, which creates a lacy, lightweight knit. The latter really keeps that light, soft feel of the yarn while the former creates and seemingly warmer scarf that's denser and that I don't worry will snag on something and be damaged. Doubt there's yarn enough to do one of each.

So the question is: go with a lightweight, "open" scarf which is fast and easy to make and feels like soft down against the skin (and also uses less of the yarn) or go for a thicker, denser scarf in hopes of it being warmer and more durable? It's really hard to decide... Maybe it's just time to let it rest for a day or two while focusing on another, more pressing project?

If there's enough yarn left after making the scarf (yeah, I've no idea how much yarn you need to knit anything), maybe I should do a pair of matching muddar too? Trying to to remember the english name for muddar/pulsvärmare/vristvärmare. Is is as simple as wrist warmers? *runs off googling it* Yeah, that seems to work. Even if the word seems to include fingerless mittens (halvvantar) as well.

I do have a pair -- or actually two, but the pair first made (see below, for a word challenge; my word was chanterelles) turned out to be too short once the yarn stretched out. So I made a second pair without pearls. Very easy to make, great beginner's project -- and a useful one if you live in a colder climate. The only trouble is that once you start making them, it's hard to stop!

But, really, it's too early to think about that when I can't even decide how to knit the scarf... And who knows how much yarn I'll have left. It might very well not be enough. And, anyway, I really should focus on that challenge piece now!

New WIPs

If I were disciplined, my current WIP (and my WIP I mean something actually in progress, not just a current or future UFO) would be a piece of jewellery using spaced-dyed cords, but I'm having design problems so it's been put aside for today or tomorrow. Instead I've started working on two other projects -- and it's the second of the two you can see above.

As it got cold, I thought it was time to make a new, warm scarf. While I do have a warm winter jacket and rarely feel the need for a scarf, it could be useful sometimes. And it's a warm to do a little yarn stash busting. This purple eyelash yarn, which I couldn't resist when spotting it on Rusta, is so pretty I really didn't want it to be stuck in the yarn bag.

Only downside to my making a scarf (or two, I probably need a wider one for everyday life around the farm too, the one I made years ago got a tad too skinny) is that I never learned how to knit in school. My mom can knit and so can my sis (to a certain extent), but I can't. I prefer crochet anyway, but in this case that hasn't been an option as I a) don't have the really big crochet needles needed for knitting yarn and b) I worried crochet might make for a too dense scarf and ruin the soft, fluffy effect of the eyelash yarn. So instead I made this test piece on my big Quick Knit. For those who doesn't know what that is, it's like a bigger version of a knitting nancy (påtdocka) and the generic name for them in english seems to be circle loom.

But I'm not sure about the result. It looks ok in the picture, but I think it's too loose with big, gaping stitches -- and at the same time it doesn't feel like I can double the yarn without messing up the knitting. Besides, I can't get the other end of the yarn to pull loose so it can be worked with both ends at the same time. Don't know whether to continue like in the sample or try either mixing in another yarn or find another knit stitch to use. So far I've only ever tried the basic knitting you do with knitting nancies and Quick Knits. There's got to be something out there to try beyond that...

While working on jewellery and scarves, I'm also preparing something else. In this post, I mentioned filling one of the glass dome pieces with autumn leaves and luckily there was one bush left that hadn't shed all its colourful leaves. So I just cut off a few twigs and put them on the table. Not the best way of drying out leaves, but it was what I could think of just at the top of my head. There are more advanced drying techniques that might've been preferable, like using sand which I don't have, but that's too late now.

I also picked three rosehips -- and then after tending to the drying items yesterday, I realised I haven't read up on the best way to preserve rosehips. Drying might work, but that's more for using them in food as they shrivel. I would've wanted them more fresh and plump. We do have several books on everlasting flowers/imortelles with sections on pods etc, but did I read them and take advice? No. Did I even bother to google it? No. And now they look like that. But hopefully the leaves and twigs will be enough if the rosehips end up shrivelled or mouldy. I just wanted them as they are so pretty and autumnal -- and I've loved drinking rosehip soup since childhood. In autumn, nothing warms like a cup of hot rosehip soup. Not to mention my love of roses, which are even part of the blog name.

Well, it's already dark outside and another day is soon gone so I guess I should get back to the jewellery (which has a deadline -- a fast approaching deadline!). But I wouldn't mind having a scarf ready soon too. It'll be a battle between time (= make jewellery first) and temptation (= working with that lovely, fluffy yarn). Hard to tell which will win.

Finger crochet bead jewellery

I felt a bit nostalgic and perhaps even more inspired when I read a post on finger knitting/crochet over at The Beading Gem's Journal. I used to have so much fun doing finger crochet in school: it was so fast and easy to make that many kids got addicted to it. And they still teach this in school, with new generations falling for the same fun addiction.

So of cause I had to give it a try again after reading that post. I use the "looping method" described at e.g. Craftzine rather than the more common "weaving method". So I began looping my yarn, knowing I still remembered the technique -- though, just to be sure I wasn't remembering it wrong I asked my sis if it was correct. "Of cause it is, have you forgotten how it's done or something?", she retorted. Well, it was perhaps fifteen years since I last made a finger crochet snake so why wouldn't that be possible? Anyway, I hadn't forgotten: I've finger crocheted so much it's forever ingrained in my brain I think.

First (finished) piece I made was the simple bracelet above. It's made using a thick novelty yarn called Fiocco Oro by Gedifra (colour no. 6601), making the bracelet look less airy and loose than finger crochet normally do. Also, because my pinkies are so short, I found it much easier to crochet by just using three fingers instead of four. All pieces below are crocheted like this.


Then, of cause, I had to try adding beads to my finger crochet -- after all I do "regular" bead crochet as well as I've tried adding beads to my knitting nancy. I've got a lack of apropriate stringing materials for this technique so I had to make due with what I found, which was subtle enough to crochet and also thin enough to string beads on. I got out some pearl silk. I wasn't sure I had enough pearls strung so therefore only one loop on each turn was made with a pearl. I think the result is kind of nice (se below for more on the issues I had using this stringing material), but I suspect there'll be some of the same problem floating necklaces can have with beads migrating downwards due to the large loops.


That left me with enough strung pearls to make a matching bracelet. This time I added pearls on every loop, which made a significant difference in the result. Just too bad the pearl silk turned out to be a poor choice: if a loop becomes snagged, if so just on a finger nail, it pulls on the whole cord making big unsightly loops. So does some of the pearls themselves as well. A loop is easily pulled back into the cord, but really, you don't want a piece of jewellery that distorts that easily. Add to that the fact that these pieces, necklace and bracelet, keeps stretching! Ok with a necklace, but my bracelet is now far too large.


I wasn't about to give up my efforts to create a beaded version of finger crochet. This time I wanted to work in monochrome as it would highlight the texture and shapes rather than the cord itself. In the end, I got out some C-lon cord in black and strung matte black 8/0 japanese seeds on it. These beads are smaller than the pearls and together with the somewhat more rigid cord, the look is completely different from the pearl bracelet eventhough I used one bead per loop here aswell.

The stiffer stringing material also makes this cord stretchy, but not in the way the silk is stretchy. Rather, this cord is "bouncy" and when not worn it pulls together, almost like elastics when not stretched out. I think it'll stop doing that once I've used the bracelet some time and it's not a problem -- other than when you want to get a good pic of it. It's not slowly but constantly growing like my pearl bracelet; it keeps it's lenght and shape much better.


My conclusions so far are that finger crochet is a fun technique that can be used for jewellery that appeal to adults, it's not just a thing for kids. Just as with many other things, it's just a matter of what materials you use and how you use the finished cord.

Also, it is possible to add beads to the cord, but be aware that big beads can thug the cord so it distorts and note also that small beads can "sneak" through the loops: you can't expect a "perfect result" with evenly spaced beads as when using a knitting nancy, instead the beads will slide along each loop and perhaps even end up in a loop belonging to another bead. A good thing about using beads was that I found it easier to pick upp the string to push it over my finger when grabbing hold of the bead rather than the cord/string. (I use a pretty tight tension regardless of that technique I work with and it's not that easy grabbing hold of string that's sitting tight against my fingers.)

This will absolutely be something I'll continue working with, eventhough I'll probably not do it as often. If nothing else, it's a nice way of killing time or relaxing when I don't feel like beading. And, yes, I'll keep experimenting with bead finger crochet.