Knitted vest

The next Basic Wardrobe chapter I tackled was a knitted vest, modeled by these two lovely ladies:

This is a very attractive vest, shaped over the hips, with the front and armhole ribbing knitted separately.  I used Cleckheaton California yarn, a 100% 12 ply variegated wool that knitted up very quickly.  In the Golden Hands instructions, the front band and armhole bands are knitted separately and sewed on.  I decided it would look neater if I picked up the stitches around the edges and knitted the band this way.  I used a very long double-pointed needle, and I think it worked well.  it took a couple of goes to make the curve look good, but I added a little ruffle there that I really like. In fact, I think I will make another vest with a ruffle all the way down the front on both sides.

Two beanies

I've now finished all the knitting chapters in Golden Hands book 1!   Winter has really hit, and I am in such a knitting mood, so I've gone onto the Basic Wardrobe chapters.  These chapters contain patterns for wardrobe items, and I gather that they are included for those people who are experienced knitters and crocheters. (Not sure is "crocheters" is a word!).

So the first Basic Wardrobe chapter has patterns for 2 hats - knitted and crocheted:

Natty, aren't they?

I made the knitted hat in the same green wool that I made the scarf with, and I did the crochet one in 8 ply cream yarn left over from my knitted samples, but I omitted the flower.  Both worked up quickly and easily - the knitted beanie on four needles was easier than I had expected, and the shell pattern in the crochet one was very pretty.  They fit me fairly well, I'm not sure if I will ever wear them, maybe to a night footy game?

My effort:

Knitting, knitting, knitting.....

Knitting Chapter 3 gives instructions for plain and purl stitch, so  beginners can continue their scarf, and Chapter 4 shows how to cast off and add the fringing.

Things get more interesting in Chapter 5, with samples of some reasonably easy patterns - broken rib, rib, double rib, moss stitch, twisted stocking stitch, double moss stitch and basket stitch.  I've used some of these stitches before, but hadn't come across broken rib or twisted stocking stitch.  The broken rib produces a ridged effect which I can see knit up in a jumper, and the twisted stocking just gives a bit of texture to a normal stocking stitch.  The Golden Hands samples:

My samples - I worked them in cream Totem (Patons) 8 ply cream wool, and will probably put them into a baby blanket.

That's it for the knitting lessons in Book 1 - now I can start on some garments in the Basic Wardrobe chapters - can't wait!

Knitting!

I have now finished all the embroidery and needle lace chapters in Volume 1, so my next challenge is knitting, and I am really looking forward to it!  The weather is cooling down and the footy has started, so bring on the yarns and needles!

My mother taught me to knit when I was 4 or 5, and I have been clicking away, on and off, ever since.  In my 20s, I knitted myself quite a few jackets, cardigans and jumpers, I even made matching fisherman's jerseys (a Golden Hands pattern, if I remember correctly) for hubby and I! What was I thinking??  I knitted lots of baby clothes and a few toddler jumpers for my boys, but then became more interested in quilting and embroidery for a long time.  Just over the past few years, I've taken up the needles again and I've enjoyed producing some small items.  I have a HUGE collection of knitting needles, thanks to my mother and mother-in-law and I will never have to buy a knitting needle or crochet hook.

There is a LOT of knitting in Golden Hands, Volume 1, so I had better get busy if I am to get it all done before the end of winter.  I am starting with the basics, then I 'll go onto the patterns for more experienced knitters.  Chapter 1 has the usual excellent overview of the craft, including a survey of needles and yarns.  There is also a useful yarn chart, showing the tension for certain brands of yarn, and those that they can be substituted for.  Even though the magazine is over 30 years old, I am finding this very useful.

Knitting itself begins in Chapter 2, with instructions for casting on, and plain and purl stitches, and then we beginners launch into knitting a scarf. There  is a pattern for both an adults and a child scarf.  The adults scarf is HUGE, but I made it a more sensible length.

The scarf is just cast on, then knit garter stitch (all plain) until you reach the required length, then cast off - nothing could be simpler.  I used the "thumb" method of casting on which I had never done before, and it was very easy.

I used 5 balls of Patons Jet 12 ply, including the fringe. This yarn knitted up quickly and easily, and was real pleasure to work with.  I used a variegated blue/green wool - it was made up of three strands, one dark blue and two shades of green.  I knitted on 7mm (bright yellow plastic) needles, which produced the recommended tension of 4 stitches to the inch.

My finished scarf:

Now for needle lace

Embroidery Chapter 4 is the last embroidery chapter in Volume 1, and is full of useful information about transferring embroidery designs to your fabric, but no project, so I've moved onto Needle-made Lace Chapter 1.  I consider needle made lace to be an embroidery technique, but Golden Hands treats it as a separate skill.  I have always liked this type of embroidery, but haven't had a go at it as it looks hard!

This chapter explains that needle lace is basically made by building up buttonhole stitch into patterns along the edge of fabric, or in a cut-out space in the fabric.  The Golden Hands sample in this chapter is a an edging made up of small triangular shapes:

My sample is unfortunately nothing like this picture.  The sides of my triangles are not as steep, and he shapes are shorter and fatter than they should be (a bit like me, really).  I used a fine crochet cotton, and I think if I used a thicker thread the triangles would have turned out better:

Embroidery continues

Embroidery Chapter 3

This embroidery chapter extends skills in simple line stitches - back stitch, stem stitch and the embellishment of running stitch with whipping and lacing.  Golden Hands suggests building up these stitches on a border, such as on a cuff:

Golden Hands loves to adorn clothing, but I decided to stick to my small mats:

The stitches I used were long and short running stitch, whipped running stitch, laced running stitch and interlacing between two lines of running stitch. 

I remember having to learn these very stitches when I was In Year 5 and embroidering the bottom of a gathered skirt.  I did the embroidery without too much trouble, but when my mother was helping me to take up the hem, in a rush, as it had to be finished for the school Open day the next day. We had a big fight about the length and she left me to do it on my own, and I did a very wobbly job of it, so I was very worried that it would look out of place among the much more expertly sewn skirts of my classmates.  It didn't look too bad though, in a display with about 30 other similar skirts.  And, on reflection, my dressmaking skills haven't improved much!

Embroidery begins!

Now that I have finished, thankfully, the crochet chapters, I can now start on a craft much more to my liking - embroidery!  I love embroidery and couldn't wait to get started.

Embroidery Chapter 1 gives the usual Golden Hands excellent introduction to a new technique, covering threads, needles, fabric and frames.

Chapter 2 starts out with some very simple, but effective, running stitch patterns.  Below is the Golden Hands sample:

And below is my effort:

I embroidered the running stitch on a small piece of evenweave fabric that I purchased at Lincraft and used stranded cotton ( 3 strands).

Then I played with making different patterns with the running stitches:

Fun, quick and easy - I'll make a set of small mats with this embroidery.