Ways to Improve Your Knitting - Learn About Yarn Weights

When we talk about “yarn weights,” we mean the thickness of the yarn.  Since the thickness of the yarn is critical to your projects’ success, yarn weight groups can be very useful.  Generally, if you can’t get one yarn in a group another yarn in the same group will probably make an okay substitute; however, each yarn weight group has a range of thicknesses.  A thinner yarn in the same group won’t substitute well for a thicker one, unless you do the math to adjust the pattern.

And let’s think about actual “weight” for just a moment.  Patterns usually specify so many ounces or grams of yarn.   Because some fibers have more heft, you get very different yardages for the same number of ounces of yarn, depending on whether the yarn is acrylic, rayon, cotton, silk, or wool, and also depending on the spin of the fiber.  When in doubt, buy more than you think you need and keep the receipt.  A reputable store will allow you to return an extra ball or two, if it’s new and unopened.

When you’re picking out yarn, it’s very helpful to get used to the various markings on the packages.  These skein-of-yarn logos with a number inside indicate the yarn’s weight group (thickness – we’re back to thickness!).  In addition to the group number logo, there’s usually a gauge diagram which gives additional information about the thickness of the yarn.  When you’re trying to get a good substitute, if you can get the gauge diagram to match, you’re all set.

Of course, you must rewind any skeined yarn for knitting with your machine.  Yarn gets clumpy and tangled in skeins.  Lots of hand knitters untangle the yarn as they go, but that just doesn’t work with knitting machines, which yank out and use a yard or two of yarn in a single pass of the carriage!  Along with a knitting machine, you need to invest in a yarn winder.

For reference on yarn weights, here’s a great little chart from the Yarn Council of America that you can print off and keep with your knitting notes:

http://www.craftyarncouncil.com/weight.html

These are the consumer yarn weights with the symbols on the label: 

Lace weight is really skinny stuff – you can expect to get 8 to 10 stitches per inch hand knitting the stuff.  This would be using a 000-1 size knitting needle!  Lots of times, hand knitting lace patterns use this yarn with a loose gauge to give a loopy, gauzy look.

I often successfully knitted lace weight yarn on the knitting machine, but it tends to be a little thin for the standard gauge machine.  When the yarn is really thin, you tend to get the following problems:

1. The yarn slips through the upper tension unit too easily.  You want your upper tension unit to actually hold the yarn just enough so that the rabbit ears (excuse me, I should say take-up springs) go up and down as you knit. 
2. The stitches might not knit off the needles but tend to stay on and clump. 
3. The finished fabric might be too gauzy and see-through.

Some strategies to make very skinny yarn practical in your standard gauge machine:

1. Use enough weight, evenly placed across the machine – but not too much.  You’re going to have to experiment to get this right!
2. Use the fine knit bar that came with your ribber.  This long, skinny piece of plastic fits between the needles and the gate pegs on the main bed and presses against the needle as it goes in and out, helping to move the stitch down off the needle.
3. Consider doing full needle rib stitches instead of stockinette-based stitches.  (In fact, if you’re learning to “full needle rib,” this is the yarn to start with!
4. Do a lot of swatching and be flexible about trying different stitch patterns to see what works best
5. Double-up the yarn (knit two strands at once)
6. Play with the upper tension setting so you get a little drag on the yarn feed

·         Consider using the yarn for something lacy, deliberately going for a gauzy look

I would call this “fingering” or “sock” weight yarn.   Years ago this was “baby” weight yarn.  Now the stores are filled with much thicker yarns labeled “baby” weight, so don’t go by that designation anymore!  “Baby” can mean anything from fingering yarn to bulky yarn, since the yarn companies are marketing to beginners with quick, thick projects.  That’s fine, but can be confusing when you’re trying to figure out yarn thickness.

Lace weight yarn hand knits on a size 1-3 needle and give 7-8 stitches per inch, roughly.   This corresponds (roughly) to 2/12 yarn in the commercial cone yarns.

Every machine has a “sweet spot,” a yarn thickness that is ideal for that machine.  It simply hums along better with yarn in the right thickness.  It may work very poorly, or not knit at all, with other sizes of yarn.  For standard gauge machines, 4.5 mm in needle pitch, “fingering” is usually the yarn to use.

Not only is fingering weight yarn more pleasant to use than thick yarn, you’ll often get a more figure-flattering result with thinner yarns.   Most nice sweaters you see in the shops are not made with thick, chunky yarn.  Sweaters tend to add a little visual size to the figure, and chunkier yarns add more.  These thinner yarns can even be blocked so they’re soft and drapy for a high-fashion look.

If I were only allowed to give one piece of advice to a beginning machine knitter, I’d say, get some skinny yarn for learning!  If only beginning machine knitters will start right out with the right thickness of yarn for their machines, they have a much better experience with a lot less frustration and problems.  Even if you don’t want to knit socks, sock yarn may be the easiest thing for you to obtain in local stores for your knitting machine.

Cone yarn is fantastic for machine knitting.  Do not limit yourself to yarns you can get in the local stores – venture onto the internet and try cones of yarn intended for machine knitting.  First of all, they’re pre-waxed so slide easily through your machine.  Secondly, the yardage on a great, big cone is amazing.  You can knit and knit without having to join a new end.  And, coned yarn is wound in the ideal way to feed perfectly into your machine – no rewinding of yarn!

Usually, fingering weight yarn is a little too thick for full needle rib (FNR).  If you set your ribber up for FNR and look at the needle arrangement, you’ll observe that where you had 50 needles knitting on the main bed, now you have 100 needles in the same amount of space.  It follows that you need a much thinner yarn for FNR.

This is called “sport” yarn.  It’ll give 5-1/2 to 6-1/2 stitches per inch on a size 3-5 hand knitting needle. 

“Sport” is a very nice size for a lot of things.  I encourage hand knitters and crocheters to try sport yarn for a more professional finish than the thicker yarns – and especially encourage crocheters to use it.  It’s a little thick for standard gauge, 4.5 mm, Japanese flatbed knitting machines, though.

Your standard machine will probably knit sport weight yarn on every needle, but it may struggle with it.  

Some common symptoms of too-thick yarn include:

1. Carriage is hard to push.  Never, never force the carriage!  If it’s hard, grinding, or extra-noisy to push, completely change your plans.  Why put that strain on your precious machine?
2. The knitted fabric may be stiff, too tight, and feel “packed.”
3. Yarn might lie on top of the stitches instead of knitting through.
4. The lace carriage may refuse to transfer the stitches.
5. Yarn may be too fat to fit easily inside the needle hook (and if it’s this fat, it will be nothing but trouble)

Some strategies for trying to knit thicker yarn include:

1. Try knitting on every-other-needle. 
2. Consider a 1x1 ribbing or a ribbing with half pitch and every third needle on each bed, then racked to center the ribber needles.
3. Loosen the upper tension unit.
4. Try playing with the carriage tension settings.  Sometimes a tighter setting will be easier to knit, and sometimes a looser setting.
5. Use enough weight.

·       Again, don’t use yarn in your machine if it strains the machine.

“Sport” weight yarn is typically terrific in a mid-gauge machine, which has a 6 mm or 6.5 mm pitch.  It has a little bigger needle, which helps hold the fatter yarn.

Also try “sport” weight yarn on your bulky machine.  I really like the way it knits on my Brother bulky.  It’s nice for ribbed stitches on the bulky.  A lot of people think a “bulky” machine knits “bulky” yarn, but no, it knits thicker-than-standard-machine yarn…how thick, well, depends on the machine.

Sizes 3 and 4 are the DK/Worsted sizes.  3 is lighter, more like a DK (double knitting or light worsted) and 4 is thicker, more like Red Heart worsted (not my favorite yarn, but so very familiar to Americans, so you can visualize that thickness).

These yarns are typically too heavy for a standard knitting machine.  One of the first things beginners do is try to knit these, because they’re common, familiar yarns.  Yes, you can usually knit them on a standard machine on every other needle, but no guarantees, kids.  If you see those too-heavy-yarn symptoms, well, the yarn is too heavy.  If the yarn over-fills the needle, it’s too thick for certain.  If you’ve been in the habit of knitting worsted (group 4) yarns on every other needle on your standard machine, try much thinner yarn and experience a completely different, easier and better knitting session.

These yarns will sometimes knit on a mid-gauge machine but usually are too thick for that as well.

These yarns will usually knit on a bulky machine (8 or 9 mm pitch).  You might like group 3 better than group 4.   I just wrote a book of bulky machine projects, and I used category 4 yarn for every one of them – and I used 8 and 9 mm machines.

It’s time to talk about bumpy, hairy yarn.  Bumpy yarn might be thick-and-thin, crimped, or slubby, or it could be a twist of more than one yarn, some strands crimped, slubby, or uneven.  For the purpose of getting these yarns to knit successfully on the knitting machine, look at the very thickest part.  These tend to knit up thicker than they look like they will.

Hairy yarn is especially problematic on the knitting machine.  It knits up so much bigger than you expect it to – and the machine just magically smooths away all the fluff on the stockinette side.  You get fluff on the reverse stockinette side, but that’s not helpful unless you were planning to use that for the right side of the knitting. 

I use it, especially on the bulky, anyway.  I like that look.  First of all, I look for a thinner hairy yarn, and secondly, brush it very lightly after knitting it to fluff it up.  I use a baby hairbrush or a soft natural bristle brush and I don’t brush it much.  Just go easy on it, since you can always brush it more later, but you can’t fix it if you brush it too much.   

Ah, this is the thick stuff, giving 3 to 3-1/2 stitches per inch on a size 9 to 11 needle. 

Generally, this is too thick for your knitting machine.  Think of it as hand knitting yarn only.

It’s probably too thick for even a bulky machine.  You can try it on every other needle, but it’s a long shot at best.  I have nursed a very few brands through the bulky machine with the following strategies:

1. I tape or shim open the upper tension unit dial. 
2. I rewind it and wax it like crazy.  Yarn spray’s helpful, too.
3. I might use every other needle or a very wide ribber needle setup.
4. I use more weight than normal and knit very slowly.  After every single row, I check the stitches.

However, I have to be highly motivated to bother with this.  If I think it feels forced or hard on my machine, I stop, because I don’t want to ruin my machine. 

I don’t even like to bend a needle – to me, bent needles are an indication that I did something I should not do to my machine.  The machine disagrees – it just told me that bent needles are an indication of abuse.  J Okay, maybe your machine won’t gripe and will suffer in silence, but you know that if you’re bending machine needles you’re not treating your machine well.  I know from sad experience that if the yarn doesn’t fit fully inside the hook that it won’t knit through the machine decently. 

Yarn Weights - Guest Blog from Margit Tritt

 Margit is a Silver Reed (Studio) knitting machine dealer in Colorado.  Her business is www.pacaknits.com.  

I greatly appreciate active dealers like Margit who are knowledgeable and provide services for machine knitters.  Margit has classes and parts.  Margit is now the Silver Needles Cone Winder dealer.  I have one of these wonderful machines, which I keep out and use regularly.

Margit recently wrote a useful essay about yarn weights which follows.  I have a previous essay about yarn weights here:  https://diananatters.blogspot.com/search?q=yarn+weight  If you want to have an enjoyable, productive experience in machine knitting, choosing the right yarn is critical!

Yarn Weight Categories 

Compiled by Margit Tritt, www.PacaKnits.com

Updated January 2020 

ARGH! Everyone seems to call yarn by different names using a confusing set of units! Hand knit and crochet, EU (Europe) vs. US, machine knit, weaving WPP (wraps per inch), YPP (yards per pound), nm (meters per 1 gram – metric yarns number), … depending on the system you’re using, 16/2 = 2/24 = 6720 yds / lb (cotton count vs worsted count) 

BTW, the basic conversions I know off the top of my head are: • 2.54 cm = 1 inch • 453.6 grams = 1 pound • 1 kilogram (kg) = 2.2 pounds 

Thank goodness for Google (and other search engines) and built in conversion computations. In the “old” days when I got my bachelor’s degree in mathematics, we used the CRC Standard Mathematical Tables and Formulae. I don’t remember what version I used but much of this info is available on calculators now. 

What works with what machine? I’ve combined info from various web sites to provide basic guidelines. Please go to the sources listed below and do your own research. When all else fails – SWATCH!! (I’m kidding – always always always make a gauge swatch for a knit item that requires specific dimensions.) Note: Silver Reed manuals have photos to correlate actual sizes of yarn to stitch dial settings and of course, the different gauge machines will support different sizes of yarn. Yet more sets of numbers that have no relationship to the table below! 

 I did not include #6 (Super Bulky) and #7 (Jumbo) yarns as these generally cannot be used as main yarns in any machine. However, they may work for weaving so keep your yarn stash! 

3/11 = Sport Weight 

4/8 = Worsted Weight 

2/11and 3/15 = Fingering Weight 

2/20 and 2/24 = Fine weight 

2 strands of 2/24 together = Fingering Weight. 

Here are some pertinent links:

Craft Yarn Council Standard Weight System

Swicofil Yarn Conversion

Wikipedia Units of Textile Measurement

One nm equals 1,000 meters of yarn per kilogram (1,000 m/kg). This equals 50 meters per 50 grams. A 1/8 nm yarn (usually just called 1/8, without the nm) tells you that the yarn has been spun 8 times longer than the standard and is therefore finer. You will get 8,000 meters per kilogram if your yarn is a 1/8. The first number in the name, or the 1 in 1/8 indicates the number of plies in the yarn. A 1/8 yarn has one ply, a 2/8 yarn has 2 plies, etc. A 2/8 yarn indicates the yarn was spun to 8,000 meters per kilogram, but then plied into a two-ply yarn. The finished yarn will therefore measure 4,000 meters per kilogram. 

A 3/8 yarn will have 2,666 meters/kilogram, or 8000 divided by 3. 

How does the general numeric system compare to the CYCA chart? From thick to thin: 

• 4/8 yarn yields 1,120 yards per pound and is closest to what hand knitters consider a DK weight yarn or #4. 
• 3/8 yarn yields 1,490 yards per pound, or sport weight yarn. Similar to a DK weight, but slightly thinner or #3. 
• 2/8 yarn yields 2,240 yards per pound, for a fingering weight yarn or #2. 
• 2/18 yarn yields 5,040 yards per pound and is considered laceweight or #0 - #1. 
• 2/20 yarn yields 5,600 yards per pound and is also considered laceweight. The difference between 2/18 and 2/20 is slight for a hand knitter, akin to the difference between 4/8 and 3/8. 
• 2/24 yarn yields 5,960 yards per pound, and again, is considered laceweight.  

Goldilocks Challenge: Gift Scarves on the USM

My husband John is teasing me about knitting warm scarves this week.  It's 80 degrees and absolutely balmy here - but I pointed out that it's very cold indeed in other parts of the world.  We'll get our cold weather later, I'm sure; Central Texas has real Drama Queen weather, harsh and changeable, when it feels like it.

Here are the gift scarves knitted on the Ultimate Sweater Machine.  First, at the top, is the man's scarf, the Papa Bear part of the Goldilocks project.  This was knitted with 3 balls of Lion Brand Tweed on Keyplate 3.  It was done over 46 stitches. The yarn is acrylic, required a light steaming so it wouldn't curl, and has a nice, smooth hand.

I thought Papa Bear got the classiest scarf.  It's really beautiful in person.  I do wish the pictures did these scarves justice - they are deeply textured and rich-looking.  Add fringe or tassels if you want.  Papa's scarf didn't curl much except at the edge, and I steamed it lightly.

  

The second scarf is the women's scarf made in Yarn Bee Baby Boucle.  It took 2 balls (that stuff goes a long way!).  I used 46 stitches again.  This was the most difficult yarn to knit with, thick and loopy.  Don't you dare try it first - use a smooth yarn first and you can deal with loops and hairs  later.  Use Keyplate 2 and 46 stitches.  It's an acrylic/polyester fiber and the finished scarf is rather floppy, not bouncy, and hardly curls at all. If you steam, don't steam much, or this yarn will go limp!  The  yarn is dyed in stripes in gorgeous colors, so no need to change colors.  When you run out of the first ball, try to start the second ball in that same spot in the wide stripes.  

 At the bottom, the Baby Bear part of the project - a child's scarf, knitted with worsted weight I Love This Yarn in a self-striping, random-looking combination of blue, green, peach, cream, and orchid.  It's bright and fun and was absolutely the easiest of the yarns that I tried for the scarves.  Here's your chance to use a bright, fun variegated yarn.  This yarn is a great choice for your first scarf; since it knits so smoothly.  You can go faster and you will definitely have less problems with this yarn!  I only used 38 stitches and Keyplate 2.  

You don't have to shop for exactly the same yarn I used, but I do recommend you start with something smooth, preferably worsted weight.  Look what a huge difference in the scarves, just from choosing different yarns! 

The child's scarf is the bounciest yarn, and also the curliest.  I gave it more steam to take the curl out.

Here is the procedure for knitting a scarf (video to follow - I have filming done but not editing).:

1.  Begin by watching the USM video and practicing so you're comfortable with the machine.

2.  Cast on 38 stitches (child) or 46 stitches (adult).  I suggest keyplate 2 for 4-ply worsted and 3 for a smooth bulky, but if a different plate works better for your yarn, it's okay.  You're going to do this by picking out the stitches for use, putting the green cards behind them, putting the folding hem weight over the needles and centered, putting the elastic cord in the hooks, and folding down the hem weight.  Now thread up a smooth waste yarn (in a contrasting color from your scarf), use the yellow card to push the needles back into "forward working position," open those latches (this machine does not have a latch opener on the carriage, so a closed latch will give you trouble) and knit 8-10 rows.  The waste yarn acts as a stitch holder.

3.  Pull out several yards of the scarf yarn and let that hang down (use to crochet finished edge later).  Now thread up the machine with the scarf yarn and knit back and forth until at least 6 feet in length for a man, at least 5 feet in length for a woman, or at least 4 feet in length for a kid.  Your preference, of course, as to length, but remember to measure without any weight.  

4.  As you knit along, you have to have weight all the time, so when the weight hits the floor (surprisingly soon), you'll have to roll up the knitting around the weight, pin it with a clothespin on each side, and that'll keep some weight on the work.

5.  When your scarf is long enough, you pull certain needles to hold - from the edge, the 3rd and 4th needles, then leave 6 needles in work, then 2 in hold, on across, ending with 2 in work.  Now push these needles back so the yarn drops right off of them and all the way back out of work.  We're unravelling 2 stitches deliberately in several places across the knitting. 

6.  Pull down several yards of yarn again for finishing up with crochet before you cut the scarf yarn.  

7.  Knit 8-10 rows with waste yarn, which acts as a stitch holder, then knit across with no yarn, holding the knitting with your hand, and all the knitting will fall off.    

8.  Using the latch tool, take the first 2 unravelled loops at the top of the knitting, twist them once, then unravel the next two loops and pull through the first 2 loops.  You only twist the first two loops.  Keep unravelling 2 loops and pulling them through the 2 loops on the hook.  I listen to TV or an audio book while I do this.  These loopy chains give a 3-dimensional texture to the scarf and help reduce the curl of the scarf.  Latch up the chains all the way down into the waste yarn at the bottom.

9.  Using about a G or H crochet hook and the yarn you left at the end, crochet in each open stitch (the waste yarn is still there, so you can see the loops to poke into - consult the video) and when you get to a cable, crochet right in the middle of it.  Remove the waste yarn.  Fringe or tassels are optional - I didn't do them, but if you do, you might like the looks of long tassels attached to the cables.  

10.  Use a crochet hook to finish the other end.  Hide any loose ends by sewing into the edge stitches.  

11.  Steam the whole scarf lightly and get the curl out.  If you don't have a steamer, use a steam iron.  Don't touch the scarf with the iron or steamer - hold it above the scarf, smooth with your hands, and don't burn yourself.  Don't overdo the steam - use a little, see if that's enough, then use a little more if needed.  These are synthetic yarns, so steam will change them permanently.  I like to steam the cabled side first, then flip it over and do the smooth side.

You can play around with the latched loop trim.  This is a great trim for afghans and pillows.  It's very nice to rip more stitches, maybe 3, down and latch up more loops, say 3 or 4 at a time, but I use that more for a thicker afghan and not so much for a neck scarf.  You can also do this trim by leaving needles out of work, but you have to leave a lot of needles out of work to make wide enough loops compared to using unravelled stitches for your loops.  The out-of-work idea does eliminate the unravelling step.  

Run into problems?  Please ask questions.  Do you think I left something out?  Bug me, and I'll fix it.

Machine Knitting Tips for Beginners - Frustration Busters!

Every once in a while, I meet someone who tried to learn to machine knit and gave up in frustration. I recall my own tremendous frustration at trying to learn, on my own at first, from a manual that seemed to be translated from the Japanese by people who couldn’t quite speak English.

I was lured into hand knitting and crochet by the beautiful colors and soft fibers. I thoroughly enjoy hand knitting, a soothing, tactile activity which helps me keep hands busy and mind serene. As a hand knitter, I struggled to finish projects. It seemed that my projects dragged on for months with a lot of wanting to find time to knit and very little finished. The first time I saw a knitting machine burning up yards and yards of yarn in seconds and making something beautiful and complicated I was completely hooked.

Just because I had bought the thing and couldn’t work it didn’t seem like any kind of reason to give up, so I struggled through with the help of teachers, seminars, books, and friends.

Wouldn’t it be nice to not have to learn the hard way? Here are some tips I wish I’d know when I started, genuine frustration busters:

1. 1. Begin by making sure the machine is in good order. All these notes are about Japanese machines. Look at the individual needles. Are any bent? Do latches open and close okay? Getting a damaged needle out of the machine and replaced can save you a world of annoyance.

2. 2. Look at the gate pegs, and if any are bent, straighten them. You can crouch at the end of the machine and sight down the length of the machine bed, just to make sure that the pegs form a straight line like a line of soldiers.

3. 3. Oil the machine. Use light sewing machine oil. Lori Lynn machine lubricant in an aerosol can is great stuff, too (not to be confused with their yarn spray, also good, but it’s to spray on the yarn). You just dab a little bit on the needle bed and as you move the carriage, the oil gets distributed.

4. 4. Defuzz the machine. Use a brush to get bits of yarn off – and I like to attack my machines with the vacuum to get fuzzies out that have fallen inside after a project. There’s also a long brush you can buy from a dealer for cleaning out the inside.

5. 5. Make sure the sponge bar is okay. The needles shouldn’t just flop around – they should be held in place by a foam-covered sponge bar. You can order a replacement sponge bar. You can also learn all about them and how to fix yours very inexpensively at the wonderful, wonderful site: http://www.knitssings.com. And, while you are over there, check out the terrific machines she finds by cruising yarn sales during the summertime.

6. 6. If your machine is in good working order, most problems you will encounter will come from the yarn! Use skinny yarn. In fact, use skinnier yarn than you think you have to use! If your machine is standard gauge (4.5 mm between needles), use fingering weight or finer yarn like lace weight. If you have a midgauge, use sport or finer; if you have a bulky machine, still use sport weight and only use worsted weight after you’re experienced. Sure, your machine will probably take heavier yarn, but do yourself a favor and get yarn that’s easy to use. As for that business of putting 4-ply (worsted) yarn on every other needle on a standard-gauge bed, wait until you’ve learned the machine with skinny yarn.

7. 7. Use cone yarn, if you can. Cone yarn is waxed to knit more easily and feeds beautifully off the cone, which you simply set on the floor. Besides, cone yarn is very economical, and I want you to make great piles of samples without much concern about the cost of yarn.

8. 8. If you absolutely can’t get cone yarn and use skein yarn, rewind it with a mechanical winder. Either set it on the floor with it wound around the yarn winder yarn holder, and pull from the outside, or else you can slip it off the winder and pull from the center. If you pull from the center it must be so loosely wound that you can pull yarn out without the ball of yarn lifting off the floor.

9. 9. Avoid cotton yarn, fuzzy yarn, bumpy yarn, and chenille yarn while you are learning. You’re going to be thrilled with the beautiful novelty yarns that your machine will take, but right now, go for the plain stuff!

10. 10. If you use skein yarn, use a wax cylinder on your wax holder. You thread the machine, then put the wax ring on top of it, and it turns slowly as the yarn feeds.

11. 11. Use light colors, which are easier to see. You will want your reading glasses and good light anyway.

12. 12. Take your time with the lessons. I hope you work through them methodically if you’re a true beginner.

13. 13. Don’t push the carriage too fast. First of all, rushing makes the tension uneven, and secondly, if you have an “oops!” moment and jam the carriage, you won’t damage it if you aren’t pushing too fast.

14. 14. If you get a chance to own a motor, you’re a lucky duck (wow! Do I love my motor!), but don’t use it while you are just beginning. This is the same issue as #12. I want you to learn your machine, how it feels, and how hard to push it, and not make a mistake and then have that powerful motor damage needles if the carriage jams.

Happy knitting! I hope someone sends me a project photo soon!

Diana

Estimating Yarn Requirements

I got a great question in the comments. If Kathryn knits to match a sewing pattern, how can she estimate the necessary yarn amount?

When I had my yarn shop, we tried to sell people plenty so they didn't run out of the dye lot. Running out of the dye lot creates a terrible situation for the knitter, so we avoided that and cheerfully refunded any extra unopened yarn knitters returned. I tried to get people to buy whatever the written pattern called for plus one ball. We knew that ball was coming back and going into clearance, but the knitter wouldn't be stuck without yarn to finish the project. In eight years I only remember one knitter coming back unhappy because she ran out of yarn.

There was a lady who came around every few months with a list of yarns and dye lots she needed. She had a business service locating the yarn knitters needed to finish projects. It was amazing that she found the matching yarn as often as she did. Just think how many brands, lines, colors and dye lots of yarn there are!

My staff and I also learned that there's tremendous variation in yarn requirements. Cotton seems to weigh the most per yard. You don't get as many yards in a certain weight ball or cone, and you will need more. Thickness matters, too. If the yarn is thick, it will take more ounces for the sweater. If the yarn is thin, it goes father.

I developed some rules of thumb about how much yarn certain projects take. A long sleeved women's medium sweater, pullover or cardigan, takes less than a pound of yarn. The whole sweater takes about 4 times what the back takes, if it has long sleeves. Add yarn for big cowl or shawl collars, belts, or other details. Add for fair isle...add for cables...

Another favorite rule of thumb: 3 pounds of yarn for a nice sized crocheted afghan! I think an afghan should be at least 45" wide and 72" long. Remember, crocheting takes more yarn than knitting for an item the same size. Oh, and get 50 grams (1-3/4 ounces) for one knitted adult sock.

When I got DAK (Design A Knit software for machine knitting), I learned to use the yardage calculator in DAK. You can do your own yarn calculations, though. Multiply the average inches in width by the inches of length, and you've got a rough idea how many square inches in the garment piece. Ignore neck cutouts or sleeve cap shaping and measure it as if it were the bigger rectangles, and that gives you a margin of error so you don't run out.

Next, knit a sample in the same yarn and the same pattern stitch. Weigh and measure your sample, and jot down the square inches (length times width) and weight. The sample's square inches divided by the sample's weight gives you the square inches per ounce (or gram, your choice. I like grams).

When I had my shop and we had to estimate needlepoint wool, we had a big piece of clear plastic marked in square inches. We'd lay it on top of the project and count squares to get an idea how much yarn was needed in the different colors. This would be a good tool to have on hand for knitting, as well.

You do need to weigh accurately. Lately, I've been using a Weight Watchers diet scale for weighing yarn, samples, and garments. At my shop, we had a produce scale just for yarn. I have used a postage meter, too, to do the weighing. I have walked into the grocery store with a bag of yarn before and put it on a scale! They probably think I'm a nut, but at least I don't look dangerous!

Finally, you divide the total square inches in the garment by the square inches per ounce, and you've got a yarn estimate!

July Knit Club Meeting

We had July's Knit Natter's meeting at Barbara's house.Pat Tittizer brought her circular sock knitting machine, a beautiful old Auto Knitter on an old sock knitting tripod stand. Some photos of it are included here. I was quite taken with the stand. Pat had been knitting, but she hadn't gotten her ribber going.

I played with it a while - made things worse, at first, until I realized that the needle butts were above the cam and not coming up enough to catch the yarn.

Things got better quickly after that. Then I realized that it has quite a few old, slightly damaged needles, and as we got those out of the way, I got it ribbing on enough needles that I think Pat will be fine on her own.

I demonstrated the sideways baby sweater discussed in the last blog post.

The pattern for the sideways baby sweater is long, but I think I'll just include it here after my long description of the rather interesting techniques in it last time:

Sideways & Almost-Seamless
Baby Cardigan

by Diana Sullivan

Right front: Set machine up for ribbing, 63 stitches from R31 to L32 on main bed and alternate needles on ribber for 1 x 1 ribbing, outside needles on top. Both carriages plain, tension 0 (T0), knit zigzag row.

Hang ribber comb, 2 large weights, T1 both carriages, set for circular knitting, k 3 rows to complete selvedge. Set carriages to plain, both T3, knit 5 rows and then make buttonholes.

This simple buttonhole is made by transferring a stitch from the ribber onto the needle above on main bed to the right. The first ribber needle to transfer 25L, transfer to MB to 24L. Make sure and put empty needle back in B position. Transfer 12L on ribber to 12L on MB, then 1L ribber to lR on MB, then 12R on ribber to 13R on MB, then 24R to 25R on MB. Make sure all needles returned to B position. K 5 more rows in ribbing. This completes the front band.

To bind off the rightmost 7 stitches, transfer the ribber stitches for the first 7 stitches onto MB needles (3 ribber stitches get transferred), then do a latch tool bind off and free the stitches from the gate pegs.

Leaving the leftmost 7 stitches in ribbing, transfer all the other stitches to the main bed. Turn MB tension to T8, leave ribber tension alone. K15 rows. When knitting with the ribber with so many stitches plain, it may be necessary to put the needles in E position so they’ll knit off okay.

After the 15 rows, cast on an additional 10 stitches on the left side in ribbing, using a ribber e-wrap cast-on. You go counterclockwise around the ribber needle, then clockwise around the upper bed needle and so on. Now on needles L42-R24.

K1 row to the right, then place a 7-weight hanger and a small weight on the newly cast-on stitches. K10 rows this way with the ribbing on the left and the rest of the bed plain.

Transfer the ribbing stitches up to the main bed. Drop the ribber, change to regular fabric presser, all stitches now on MB, reduce the weight a little, K19 rows.

The leftmost 27 stitches are the armhole opening, the stitches on right are the body. Put the body stitches onto a garter bar as follows: Bring needles to E position from L14-R24, put on a short length of garter bar and hang it from the gate pegs. Put empty needles out of work.

Needles in the armhole position go to E position. Set carriage to not knit E needles. Unthread the machine but don’t break the yarn. Move the yarn out of the way over to the right.

Sleeve: Bring every other needle on the left of the needles in work into work, in other words, 44L, 46L…to 68L to B position. Bring the carriage from L to R, it won’t knit anything because some needles are in hold and the other stitches are on a garter bar. After it’s on the right, thread it with a length of contrasting yarn hung between the beds, with a clothespin hanging on the free end, on the left of the stitches in work, knit across and it lays it in the needles newly in B position.

Unthread contrast yarn, put clothespin on the other end, and then hang claw weights from the contrast yarn. Bring out in-between needles so there are 27 out to the left in B position. Carriage in part, move to right without knitting anything and thread garment yarn from over hold needles, under fabric presser and then into the feeder. Take carriage out of part, knit across, lifting yarn up a little as you go from right to left, and it’ll go into every needle on the left. Put the needles that are in hold to D position so they will knit. RC000, K4 rows and decrease 1 stitch each side, needles in work using the full-fashion method. Also take one of the claw weights and move it just to the left of the garter bar group of stitches so the sleeve will move downward. Decrease on both sides on rows 13, 21, 29, 37, and 45. After row 45, K8 more rows to row 53. Hang a triangle weight holder and a large weight somewhere near the top of this knitting. Unthread the carriage, change to ribber arm, bring ribber carriage over so it’s lined up with MB carriage, thread with sweater yarn, transfer every other needle to ribber to make the sleeve cuff. Change MB tension to T3 to make the cuff. K10 rows ribbing ending with carriage on right, transfer stitches from ribber to main bed and bind off. That completes a sleeve.

My preferred method of binding off ribbing is to knit one row loose, transfer loose stitches to main bed, pull needles to E, and use latch tool to pull a loop through a loop.

Put empty needles out of work. Put ribber bed down and ribber covers on.
Pick up the garter bar stitches and put them back on needles. Pull the sleeve out between the beds and fold it right sides together. Hang the needles that are on contrast yarn on the next 27 empty needles and remove the contrast yarn with the wrong side facing you. Be careful not to twist the stitches. The yarn running through the stitches is going to turn one stitch to the right and the next to the left, so you have to see which way the stitches are turned and put the transfer tool in correctly. Remove contrast yarn and double-check the stitches placement on then needles.

Back: You now have a little inside-out sleeve hanging toward you. Put it between the beds and add a claw weight. Change to regular fabric presser, T8, RC000, K94 rows.

Sleeve: Make exactly like first sleeve.

Front: Sleeve between the beds, right sides together. Rehang the garter stitches. Then, to their left, rehang the sleeve stitches in the same way as the first sleeve. Put on regular fabric presser, T8, K18 rows over the two groups of stitches.

Change to ribber arm, MB T8, RB T3, bring up ribber, thread the ribber arm. Transfer every other stitch, first 8 on the left hand side of the knitting to the ribber bed and K10 rows. Increase the weight at this point using a triangle weight hanger. K10 rows. Cast off first 10 needles so first needle in use is on MB. I use a latch tool cast yarn and have to pick the yarn off the gate pegs. K14 rows, MB T8, RB T3. Transfer EON from main group that’s still on top bed to get back in 1 x 1 ribbing, e-wrap cast on 7 more stitches in ribbing at right, change both beds to T3, K10 rows, then do a loose row transfer up and bind off. (After the first row, use a 7 weight hanger and small weight to secure the 7 cast-on stitches.)

Finishing: Sew sleeve seams and shoulder seams. Pick up stitches for back of neck and knit band; pick up stitches along bottom of sweater and knit band. Bands are 10 rows of 1 x 1 ribbing.

More free patterns may be found at http://knitnatters.com/.

Knitting Weights

Weights are very important in machine knitting. Even with Passap machines, which were advertised as requiring no weights, weights can be very helpful at times.

If you watch my videos, you see me use clothespins and weights quite often. This weekend, my husband and I photographed all the knitting weights I could find around my house, thinking this might be helpful for someone who is wondering what how heavy they are and how they're used. We weighed them all, too. You certainly can improvise and add more weights to your collection.

Working from the left, let's start with the lightest items - clothespins. I use them for the loose end of the yarn as I begin to knit. With a clothespin holding the yarn, I can use my hand for something else. From the left - a small plastic clothespin, 5.2 grams, 2 ounces. A plastic covered red clip, 9.8 grams, .3 ounces. A bigger blue plastic clothespin, my favorite, 10.3 grams, .4 ounces.

Then, a "heel fork." It's a cheap fork from the dollar store, and my husband bent the tines so it can hook into knitting. It's good for holding down heel stitches as I short-row. He also drilled a hole in the handle so I can hang a weight. It weighs 22.4 grams, .8 ounces.

Next, a garter carraige weight, 24.1 grams, .9 ounces.

The next object is a triangle weight holder. If you don't have a set of these, you could sure use 'em! Mine are from Silver Reed company, and they're great for holding hefty weights on ribbing. For just the holder without a weight, it's 38 grams, 1.3 ounces.

Next photo, from left: a typical claw weight for machine knitting, 108 grams, 3.8 ounces. Next, a Passap heel weight, long, white, with prongs on one end and a hole on the other (it can be used as a weight hanger), 165.5 grams 5.8 ounces. Next item - a brass weight, wonderful for main bed work, because the weight is spread a little horizontally, 214.9 grams or 7.6 ounces.

Now, for some more serious weight. First, a Passap weight from the comb and weights set, 351.5 grams, 12.4 ounces, then a Japanese small ribber weight, 210.5 grams, 7.4 ounces, then a large ribber weight, 500 grams, 17.6 ounces (about a pound), then a fishing weight (you can buy them in all kinds of different weights, and they normally have a hole. The hook was homemade, from a coat hanger), 460 grams, 16.2 ounces, including the hook (about a pound).

Finally, on the right, two sock machine weights. These are industrial weights, and you can stack more of the hockey-puck type weights on the one with the stick and hook. The one with the hook is 545 grams, 19.2 ounces, and the stackable one is 484 grams, 17.1 ounces (about a pound each). Sock machines use a lot more weight than the other machines.

In fact, now that I've gotten three antique sock machines working well, I learned that a key issue is to have NO tension on the yarn as it comes in and LOTS of weight on the knitting as it comes out. As you can imagine, I cringed at putting a whole pound of weight on a little sock toe, but I actually use two pounds on a sock toe now and two more pounds on the rest of the sock.

Tweedies

.  Knit Natters is about to have our slipper "knit in" for the troops, and while I do have some worsted weight yarn to contribute, I also have vast quantities of cone yarns - thin yarns, some industrial, and oftentimes, just half a cone.  I need some masculine colors, so I've been hunting through my cones for combinations.  I do check the fiber content and combine like fibers.  I avoid combining two slubby yarns, because bumps on both yarns seem to happen at the same time and things can get knotty.  I'll combine different textures, though, or slubby with smooth.

I'm using mostly worsted weight yarn for the troop slippers, because it's cold in Afghanistan.  Besides, the heavier yarn knits up very quickly.

The only unknown is how many plies of different skinny yarns to put together to get your gauge.  I simply experiment, putting 2-4 yarns together on a twisting yarn winder (it adds a twist to the various yarns as wind) and then knitting a swatch to see if I can get a worsted gauge.

Here are four ends of who-knows-what brown industrial yarn, and it's a little darker than the picture of the ball.  The color is more true in the picture of the mocassin slippers, down below. 

If you don't own a plying winder, there are other ways to ply the yarn.  You can do it with a spinning wheel, you can stack the coned yarn using a yarn stacker or even milk crates and then thread it directly into the machine. 

To use the stack method, you start with a cone of yarn, put it on the floor and put a milk crate over it, but bring the end of the yarn through the holes in the crate.  Then run the end of that first cone of yarn through the center hole of the second cone of yarn, which you place on top of the crate.  Put that with the yarn from cone #2, and you'll see the yarn comes off in a slow twist.  You can add another yarn for a 3-high stack and feed all this directly into the knitting machine.

I have NOT had sucess with simply putting two cones of yarn on the floor and feeding the ends into the same antenna - one yarn will feed more slowly, and after a few minutes, an ugly tangle forms.

I am going to combine two strands of exactly the same yarn.  In that case, I won't need to twist that because it's the same stuff, so I'll just thread it in the two antennas and knit with the two strands together in the feeder.

If you thread two different colors into the two antennas and use them at the same time, though, you get ugly, irregular stripes.  I think it looks better to get an all-over tweedy look like the slippers.

You can feed 2 colors into the two antennas, though, and use a plaiting feeder so that one yarn is always behind the other one.

And here's my test pair of slippers in the brown yarn:

Now, you don't have to be all subtle and monochromatic about this.  Try out unlikely combinations like hot pink, black, gray, and red, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the results.  You can also use this technique to tone down obnoxious colors.  I once mixed a shiny ivory with red, orange, and brown, and it made the shiny stuff and the ugly orange quite usable.

Update: Goldilocks Challenge

Did you think about getting a Bond knitting machine (Ultimate Sweater Machine)?  If not, think about it again.  This week, Hobby Lobby has a 40% off coupon.  No affiliation, I just like Hobby Lobby, and they carry this machine and lots of nice yarn.

Now, some tips for when you bring it home:

• Did you know there's a great video in the box?  Pull that out and watch it!  You might even want to watch it twice, if you're not a machine knitter.
• You've got to find an appropriate table for it.  The video shows what kind of table you need.  If you're really going to be happy knitting with it, you need a good, flat surface where you can clamp the machine.
• Because I knit on other machines, I have a longstanding habit of cluttering the area behind the machine with my tools.  Don't do that with a USM!  Try to put your tools down at one end of the machine, because the best way to feed the yarn is to follow the video - lay the skein down on the table behind the machine and pull out some lengths of yarn before you knit each row.  Tools and odds and ends will catch on the yarn, and when the yarn gets caught, the machine stops.  
• If you're a handknitter, you probably don't even think about pulling a little yarn out at a time and then knitting.  But - the USM knits at a furious rate and you'll need to pull out about a yard of yarn for just one row of knitting a foot wide!  Get used to the idea that now that you have a knitting machine, you have to feed it!  Chomp, chomp.  In goes the yarn, and out comes the knitting.  If you forget to pull out some yarn before a row, the machine gets hungry and beastly and refuses to knit any more.
• Expect to be very uncomfortable at first, even if you're a machine knitter.  This machine is different.  You need to practice knitting with this one, which requires NO tension no the yarn (versus most other machines, which deliver yarn at a steady tension) and which requires more weight than we're used to on the other machines.  Also, you have to pull up the yarn at the beginning of each row.  Now, if you're a hand knitter, the whole thing is awkward, so give yourself a little time.  Suspect judgment until you have your first beautiful object knitted, okay?
• Also, if you're a hand knitter, you're going to go through the whole machine adjustment.  The differences between hand knitting and machine knitting are enormous, so don't try to convert your hand knit patterns right away.  Instead, check out some of my patterns that are written for knitting machines, or the patterns at Bond America, or the scarf pattern which is my first effort in this challenge.
• Hand knitters may balk at knitting so much plain stockinette at first.  However, this is the beauty of knitting machines:  if you want a big stockinette project, you can zoom it out; if you want complexity, you can do a little more work.  Either way, you will be knitting much faster.
• The scarf is an IDEAL first project because, (1) it's a very simple rectangle, and by the time you knit it, you've gotten lots of practice, (2) some hand-tooling at the end makes it look super special, and (3) I managed to make it up with some very interesting yarn that I would not attempt to knit on my Japanese bulky machine. 
• Need yarn for the scarf?  Okay, for your first one, PLEASE do yourself a favor and buy smooth yarn. Caron Simply Soft, or I Love This Yarn, or some other worsted 4-ply will make that first project easy.  We're saving the bumpy or hairy yarn for later.  Got a lot of leftovers around the house?  Well, start with worsted or thinner in a smooth yarn.  
• Trying out the USM after using a different flatbed machine?  Well, please understand that the USM is much slower.  You really must stop often to pull out yarn.  Pulling a whole bunch at once can give you tangles.  You need to push more slowly, too.  However, you can go steal some nice tools from your regular machine stash - for instance, some claw weights, weight hangers, and perhaps a cast-on comb.  
• Wanting to jump ahead of me on this?  Well, watch my Beginner Machine Knitting Lessons.  You can find them by scrolling down the left-hand side of this blog.  Almost all of those lessons apply to the USM, and watching them will get you thinking in machine knitting concepts and jargon.
• What can you make with this machine?  Well, check out my bulky patterns, such as the warm, lined slippers in lots of sizes, a marvelous pinwheel round baby blanket, and the short-rowed baby hat.  More ideas at Heidi's Knitting Room, Knitting Today, and many other sites.

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Awesome Question from Tom About Yarn Weights

"Can you explain for us un seasoned MK'ers what the coned yarn weights are in relation to the Yarn Council chart? What is a Yarn Council "1" equal to on coned yarns? Example: 2/10, 5/12 and etc."


The top number is how many strands or plies are twisted to make that particular yarn and the bottom number is a measurement of thickness - how much length you get in a certain weight of yarn.  Therefore, the bigger the bottom number, the skinnier the strand.


This isn't entirely precise because some fibers weigh more than others for the same thickness and yardage.  It gives you a starting place, though!


I have done some research on this issue and am not any kind of expert. I get befuddled once they start talking about S and Z twists and tiny cotton fibers.  Maybe a person from the textile industry can weigh in and help us.  It does seem to me that weavers can use yarns that behave badly for knitters. 


I do have a lot of experience, though, that is, I've struggled for years to make very nice knitted items, so I have a rule-of-thumb method for figuring out the weight (thickness) of coned yarn when all I have is that marking.  What I do is divide the bottom number by the top number, which I realize is backwards for fractions, to get a number to help me classify the yarn.  For instance, with a 1/12 or a 2/24, I get "12" which to me means it's lace weight.  If I get anywhere from a 9 to a 12, I'll call it a lace weight, but I know a 12 is a lot thinner than a 9.


If I divide and get about a six, with a 1/6, 2/12, 3/18, that's about fingering weight and is just wonderful for the standard machine.  I figure 6 is right in the middle of the fingering group and would say that anything from about 5-8 goes in that family.


It follows from this that 2 strands of a "12" gives you a "6."  For instance, two strands of 2/24 gives you 4/24.


I hardly ever buy much thicker yarn on cones, and if I do, it seems like the seller has described the thickness.  


I knit a lot of swatches.  It's not just to get gauge - it's to feel the swatches and wash the swatches and make decisions about how best to use the yarn.  I think about whether the fabric is stable, not warpy or shapeless.  I want to make sure the fabric feels good, and isn't too dense or loose.  And of course, I use swatches to help decide about textures and color combinations.

Yarn and Knitting Machines

I get questions about what yarn to buy and what knitting machine to buy.

I've done most of my videos on a Brother 270, which is a "bulky" knitting machine, because it's the biggest gauge I have and therefore allows the biggest pictures and clearest closeups.

I'm not a good person to ask which gauge machine to buy because I believe I need them all! You could ask your dealer to show you things made by the different machines and look through the knitting books to compare the results. Then there's the cost issue, and the visibility issue, and the versatility issue. I did post on this a while back: http://diananatters.blogspot.com/2009/08/choosing-your-first-knitting-machine.html


As for the yarn question, please don't get the idea that you can use a lot of fancy, bulky handknitting yarns on the "bulky" machine. It takes up through worsted weight yarn and not much thicker at all. If the yarn is hairy, furry, eyelashy, bumpy, kinky, uneven, that makes it knit up much bigger. I urge you, as you're learning, to use smooth, thin yarn, thinner than you think is necessary, so you don't have a struggle caused by the choice of yarn.

For the midgauge (6 or 6.5 mm) you need sport-weight yarn or thinner.

For the standard gauge machine (4.5 or 5 mm) you need thinner than sport-weight yarn, fingering weight, lace weight, or industrial/machine knitting yarn.

The process of learning machine knitting and choosing what to knit is kind of like looking for clothes. If you go to the store searching for a red silk wrap dress with a swingy skirt, you're unlikely to find it. If you go to the store determined to try on available dresses and see what looks good on you, you'll find a dress.

If you start machine knitting by following machine knitting lessons, books and patterns, pretty soon you know what the machines will do, and you're bursting with ideas. If you go into it wanting to duplicate Aunt Irene's handknit Celtic sweater, you'll be frustrated and miss most of the fun.

Knit a Necklace

Here's my knitted necklace.  I got this idea from a book cover I saw on a foreign site online; I didn't have the book, and I don't know how they made it.  I thought about it for while, thought it would be fun to figure it out, and came up with my own version.

Materials:

You will need a small amount of thin yarn.  I have quite a lot of tiny balls of leftover self-striping and solid sock yarn because there is always a little bit left after I knit a pair of socks.  It's pretty, and I keep it, thinking one of these days I'll find a use for it.  I used 15 grams, about a half ounce, of a self-striping sock yarn for my necklace.  I made my necklace 36 beads long, or 30" long, a generous length.  When I wear it, it goes to the center of my breastbone.  

You will also need some kind of pretty thread or yarn to wind between the "beads."  I was going for a spacer-bead look, and I had this mylar gold colored run-along thread.  It was rather difficult to work with, but by the time I assembled my necklace, I was used to it.  Next time I do this, I think I'll go for something thicker and stronger.

You need something to fill the beads and made a bead shape.  I used marbles from Hobby Lobby (in the flower arranging section, $2.99 for two pounds of marbles.  You need to go with a neutral color, because the marbles will show through the knitting.  I purchased clear marbles.  The marbles are a little heavy.  You could reduce the weight of the necklace by using wooden or plastic beads.  My marbles are the typical size, about 5/8" or 15 mm.  I thought about stuffing the necklace with fiber fill instead, but the weight of the marbles does make it hang nicely.  I wasn't sure how I'd get the stuffing where I needed it, either.

One thing I would love to try is more than one size of bead and even some long beads.

My necklace was knitted on a Brother standard machine with the ribber.  I selected 7 needles in the middle of the bed on the main bed and 6 needles on the ribber.  Set to half pitch and the tightest tensions and did a zigzag row.  Hung a weight with a 7-weight hanger (this is only about 1" wide, and when it comes off the machine, the little tube is about 5/8" wide).  Set the machine for T4 and circular knitting.  Each bead is 11 rounds long, 22 rows on the row counter.  I had some self-striping yarn, but if you want to change colors yourself, change colors every 22 rows.  My self-striping yarn was quite lucky spacing for the project, as I got little 1" areas of a color, then black and white.  I had played with the number of needles and decided I liked the way 13 needles made the black and white areas form a diagonal design.

I did 36 "beads," 792 rows.  I had already knitted some samples to see what it would take to get a long enough necklace, and had realized that it gets shorter when you put the marbles in and finish it.  I constantly moved the weight up, and I kept an eye on the knitting to make sure the main bed needles were knitting off okay.  I quickly learned tht with steady weight on all the stitches, it knits off smoothly. The knitting went very quickly, but it will take you longer if you chang colors manually instead of using self-striping yarn.  You'd have ends to hide then, too.

When it was long enough, I took it off by cutting the thread, threading a needle, and running the thread through first the knit stitches and then the ribber (purl) stitches.  I knew I'd be drawing it up to close the tube later.

Now for the tedious part:  You gather the bottom of the tube with a needle.  Poke a marble in, slide it to the bottom.  Take the gold thread, thread the needle, run it through the stitches where the color changes above the marble, tighten it, wrap around and around (I used 2 strands and 12 wraps), then tie the thread, hide the ends, and cut the gold thread.  I used several back stitches to hide the ends.  As I mentioned earlier, my very thin cold thread was a pain, breaking frequently and curling if stretched.  Not sure I'll use it again for this purpose.

I poked in marbles one by one, used the gold thread to gather the tube above them, then wrapped with the gold thread.  When I got to the last marble (a few hours later), I gathered the stitches and used the beginning and ending yarn ends to sew the first and last "beads" together.  Then I did my usual winding with gold thread.

And here's a closeup.  I think this would make a charming gift, especially if the wearer is a knitter!  And, it was made from things I had on hand, except for the marbles.

A Dozen Slippers - Made and Delivered

I was so impressed with Alexandra's accomplishment - 100 pairs of slippers! 

All I needed to make recently was 12 pairs of women's medium slippers, but quickly, for a friend's project.  I told myself to use yarn I already had - no trips to the stores!

I chose the Quick and Cozy English Rib Slipper pattern from Footnotes, which is my fastest slipper pattern.  That pattern is so stretchy that a women's medium will fit just about any lady!  Besides, I was in a hurry, and I could zoom through those.

What yarn to use?  This slipper can be made on a bulky machine, or a standard gauge machine, but requires a ribber.  I could use worsted weight yarn or sock weight.  Even if I chose a yarn that wouldn't make gauge, I knew that with a pinch of math, I could recalculate the stitches and rows and still make it on either of those machines, which are standing ready with ribbers attached.

Here's the video from Footnotes, which I've never shared on YouTube before.  It shows how to make the slipper using sock yarn and a standard gauge machine. 

I wanted them to be fairly thick and sturdy, so they'll last a while, but also reasonably soft.   I wanted them to be a bit feminine.  I kept picking yarn up and then putting it back. 

Eventually, I found some pink sparkly yarn in a drawer.  (There is 'way too much yarn around here.)  This yarn is rather chunky and stiff for a sweater, with enough cotton that it isn't stretchy, yet I knew it would stretch fine knitted in this ribbed pattern.  The yarn was from Newton's Knits a few years ago.  I had been wondering, every time I looked at it, what it wanted to become!

The pattern calls for 4 ounces of yarn.  I round up when I write patterns that only specify a thickness group, because your yarn might have less yards than mine, or you might make small changes.  In this pink yarn, the bulky medium took about 3-1/2 ounces for a pair.   These knit up in 10 minutes or less per slipper.  The sewing takes me another 10-15 minutes, though!  They need a seam at the back of the heel and the top of the foot.  Hide two ends, and you're done. 

Knitting 24 slippers took less than a workday, but I did it in several sessions.  Sewing them up took a few days of indulgent TV time (lately, re-watching "Call the Midwife" on Netflix when I'm doing finishing).

I hadn't made this pattern in years.  I watched my own video to refresh my memory, and it was a good thing, because the seaming method, which I'd forgotten using, was easy and worked great.  You might like to apply these methods to a project like like a hat, that needs gathered at one end.

Once they were assembled, for safety they needed an anti-slip substance on the bottom.  John keeps silicone seal in the garage, where he uses it often, and had a new tube on hand. 

I also stuffed them temporarily, to stretch them open a bit so I wouldn't glue them shut with the silicone seal.  That turned out to not be a problem, though; I ended up putting seal on just the ridges.

Some of the silicone seal I used in the past was runny, therefore, very easy to put on - you just scribble using the cone-shaped applicator.  However,  this one was thick and pasty.  I put nalgene gloves on, squished a blob on my finger and stroked it on each rib in the ball-of-the-foot and heel areas on the bottom of the slippers.  Since my sealant was so thick, it certainly didn't go through and catch the stuffing, which I removed before taking this picture.

The photo shows slippers drying on a trash bag.  The silicone seal gets everywhere, even though I think I'm being careful.  The loose ties you see are just to keep the pairs together.

I think they look like pink, sparkly corn cobs!  They are bigger than they look, because the ribs open up when you slip them on your foot. 

Here are some pictures of them finished.  The sparkle is subtle and doesn't show up in the pix.  Note that is a seam up the top of the foot, blending in and looking like the rest of the ribs.

Here's a shameless plug for my Footnotes book and DVD.  This contains a bunch of other slippers in it, as well, as well as some sew-as-you-go socks.  Everything has 12 sizes and it comes with a very detailed technique DVD.  The slippers are for standard, mid-gauge and bulky flatbed knitting machines. 

I've sold more Footnotes than usual lately.  Usually when that happens, someone has made something very nice using one of the patterns and shared it on the internet.  I don't know what it is - would someone tell me in the comments?