Progress! + a mini tutorial
7 Small Shawls: T - 224 days and counting down.
It will be blocked this evening. Oops - just looked at the time. Maybe tomorrow! I'm feeling unmotivated lazy at the moment. :)
I didn't realize until I was finished that the yarn I was using - Wolf Creek Wools BFL sock yarn purchased at Stitches West - is 3 ply! It has a super tight twist, as you can imagine!
Anyway, here's where the mini tutorial comes in.... I always separate the plies before weaving in ends.
Initially it takes longer, but this way the ends really stay put! Even superwash.
After separating the plies, I thread the needle with each ply in succession and weave them in one by one.
I use a sharp needle and pass it through the center of the working yarn, making sure to stretch the knitting out so that I don't bind the stitches and make it difficult to block the piece.
After going through one way, I turn around and go right back through both the ply I am weaving and the yarn through which I wove it. This last step makes it virtually impossible to unravel the ends.
Trim the ends and you're set! The great thing about this method is that you really don't need to weave the plies in more than two to three inches to have them stay docilely where they have been placed.
In other news, one of my test knitters is a local friend of mine, and she brought her finished Merope to knitting this morning. We had a little photo shoot!
It turned out really beautifully.
I am quite envious of her incredibly even stitches!
Isn't it a lovely color?!
The photos really don't do it justice at all.
The rest of the day was spent doing yardwork (lots of pruning overgrown shrubbery!) and having a little 4-H rabbit meeting. The big event in the year for our local 4-H is next week: the Future Farmers of America Country Fair, and we are all rushing to get everything ready!
A question for the gardeners out there: what to do when my lemon tree's leaves are yellow? Does it need fertilizer? More acidic soil? It's blooming this year - last year I moved it and it took some time to recover - and I am so looking forward to a nice crop of lemons!
Have a great Sunday. :)
Labels: 7 Small Shawls, lace, Merope, tutorials
posted by Romi at 9:48 PM
8 Comments:
That's a great idea about separating the plies. I can't wait to try it out on my next project!
Beautiful shawl, and nice tutorial - thanks!
I don't have experience with lemons, but yellowing leaves often indicate poor trace nutrients. Sometimes this is caused by pH of soil being off, but lemons don't like particularly acid soil - pH of 5.5 to 6.5 should be fine. Check your soil pH - if you've been trying to make it acid, it may actually be too low for efficient nutrient absorption.
Adjusting pH takes time, so in the meantime I'd try to find a fertilizer with chelated (soluble for easy absorption) iron and apply as directed and see what that does for you.
Merope is beautiful and I can't wait to get the pattern!
Good luck with your lemon tree. I garden but don't have fruit trees. A Google search only brought confusion of "too much/too little water", etc.
Great tip on weaving in ends - I'll have to try that for my most-hated knitting task. :-) Merope is spectacular, especially in green (not that I'm prejudiced just because it's my favorite color...).
Thanks for the tutorial, it's a really good technique to know. I wish I knew about that just recently as I finished a baby jacket in Aran weight yarn. Would have made it so much nicer.
Merope is gorgeous and your friend did an amazing job with hers!!!!
thanks for the tutorial! and love the color of her finished merope. I am on chart c, didn't get much knitting done for a couple days or would have been finished already, love it!
lol, yes could use ther fertilizer but....
I've been reading your blog again, since I lost if for a while,(new computer), and I like the idea of the 7shawls etc. Love this one, might be because it's green too. :o) It looks like it's the same construction as Brandywine.
I've pre-ordered your booklet and am looking forward to it.
What a great tip on weaving in the ends. Most of my previous projects have ends sticking out here and there, but with my latest shawl, I used your technique, and it's virtually invisible! Thanks so much!
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