Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton, color Poppy, 1 skein
G/4.0mm crochet hook
The crochet lace pattern is often called Queen Anne’s Lace (there are other knit and crochet lace patterns by the same name), and is fairly easy to find in crochet stitch dictionaries.
A pdf download of the pattern with photos, written instructions, and symbolcraft chart will be made available for sale in the near future.
Mohair is not a good choice for a commuter project. It will send little fluffy bits into the air all around you, my fellow passengers will not appreciate it, and mohair does not like it when I am not paying attention.
When I am not paying attention, I will make a mistake, and mohair does not frog well.
Instead of frogging, I should consider a nice sharp pair of scissors with very pointy tips.
With laceweight mohair blend (Elann Super Kydd) and a big crochet hook, I can crochet and crochet and crochet and still have unused yarn, and the finished item could probably be wadded up into a ball that would fit in my hand (will not test this theory).
When blocking mohair lace, I need a space which is free of dust, direct sunlight, inquisitive dogs, an evil cat, and a curious nephew. The space for my current project will also need to be at least 3 feet long. It had better dry quickly, or I’m going to miss sleeping on my bed.
The wool (and cotton and mohair and alpaca) has been flying but most of it is for gifts and so cannot be revealed. In other news, I’ve been doing more schoolwork as we close in on the end of the semester, but I’ve also been going to the beach. Since quitting one of my jobs, I’ve had Sundays off (first time in 4 years!) so I’m only working half the weekend, not all of it. I have been itching to bring a crochet or knit project with me to the beach (I took the Buy Handmade pledge and plan to make as many gifts as I can from my stash), but I hesitate. Salt and sand probably don’t mix with yarn. Besides, I’m already the one wearing a pareo over my swimsuit, slathering myself with sunblock every half hour, wearing a hat and super-dark sunglasses, and managing to remove the hat and sunglasses for only about 10 minutes at a time while I swim (am working on a crochet hemp sunhat, btw – I borrowed a cap from my brother and it smells funny, ew, must replace). Do I really need to add a needlecraft project to the mix?
The project I’m casting on right now wouldn’t have been a good mix. I bought a skein of Cascade 109 (on sale!) from Tangle when I saw the Yarn Harlot’s Unoriginal Hat pattern posted so that I could lemming along. I’ll be using US 10 needles and casting on an additional repeat. I can’t even manage to wear my Matilda & Tillie hats, so you know I won’t be wearing a bulky cable-knit hat anytime soon, but it’s a quick knit and will make an excellent gift. I also bought a skein of Cascade Eco-Wool in Chocolate Taupe Twist, which I’m planning to use for another Matilda hat I won’t be wearing. I’ll be able to make a lot more with that skein. I kept nephew #1 occupied for a few minutes by using my swift and ball winder. He made 4 yarn cakes with the skein – the total yardage is 478 yds!
Even with everything I have going on, I’ve been finishing up a crochet lace scarf pattern and some posts on basic beanie knitting. I may need another pot of tea.
Araucania Nature Wool
US 6 circular needle
~100 stitches
2×2 ribbing
traveling rib motif from Teva Durham’s Slinky Tree Bark Rib Tunic (Loop-d-Loop: More than 40 Novel Designs for Knitters
This isn’t a beanie, as you’ve noticed, but the beginning is the same, and if I’d had more yarn, it could have become a beanie. I’m calling it a neckwarmer even though this tube can be used as a headband, and earwarmer, or an added layer with a hat.
I used a cable cast-on (done on size 8 needles), started the ribbing with one motif repeat, and then added in the second motif repeat on the other side of the tube about 3 inches up. I knit until I ran out of yarn; next time I’ll make this long enough to pull up over the nose and mouth (combined with the beanie I knit for this set, the effect would be quite ninja-like). This is long enough to tuck into a shirt collar and pull up to the chin.
Corrections to the Tillie brim instructions:
begin decreases
Row 4 should begin: sl1, p2, sl marker, inc 1
begin increases:
Row 2 should begin: sl 1, p2, sl marker
Corrections to the Matilda and Tillie brim instructions:
row count for both brims should be
Total brim rows: 132 (156, 168, 180, 192, 204)
Not an error, but but an omission:
Closing the gap at the top of the crown:
The
cast-on will leave a small hole at the top. After knitting the crown,
thread the tail of the cast-on through the cast-on stitches and pull
tight to close the hole. Weave in the
If you purchased your pattern before 23 January 2008, you have the most current version and do not need the corrections. If you purchased the pattern as a download, you were sent an email with the corrected pages as a link or as an attachment. If you did not get an email/purchased a printed pattern through a shop, you may download the corrected pages for free using the Add to Cart
button below. You will be asked for a first name, last name, and email
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information, you will still be able to download the update; just type
in something like "No Name" for first and last name and
"noemail@noemail.com" for email address.
I’m planning to make most of the gifts I give this year, and you know I love shopping on Etsy. I think I’m going to direct my family to my Etsy favorites; in previous years we’ve done wish lists, so this will be easy.
The winter knitting season officially began for me earlier this week when I received a panicked phone call from Sau, currently discovering that winter in Portland is cold (dude, I warned you). I offered to teach him how to crochet or knit before he moved to the lovely, damp, cold Pacific NW, but he got into a bicycle accident instead (he has recovered nicely). He left for Portland with a crocheted gift from me…
…admittedly one which does little for his stiff, numbed ears. I whipped up an Extra-Sensitive Thug Beanie* on Thursday, washed and dried it, and dropped it in the mail today. I took no photos partly because I didn’t want to slow down my progress and partly because, well, it’s wool/mohair blend solid black and would look like a blurry black beanie silhouette. Not the most gripping post material I could offer you. An apt kickoff for the season, though. Sau had requested any color as long as it was black ("anything else would clash with my wardrobe"), and he agreed to handwash yarn ("dude, I don’t think I’ll ever take it off long enough to wash it" – ew!), so I used Peace Fleece worsted in Baku Black, a size H crochet hook, and half-double crochet (US terms). It has occurred to me that I really do need to get around to sharing my basic crochet beanie recipe, so as I make a second one in the near future, I will try to take in-progress photos and do a little write-up. I am also knitting Sau a 2×2 ribbed beanie so that the Extra-Sensitive may be retired for washing, or for when he is feeling unusually color-friendly. I’m using a skein of Araucania Nature Wool that I uncovered in my stash. I don’t know the colorway – I tried looking it up but the color cards I’m looking at all have different coding. I am arguing that it is practically black. It is dark black with medium and light black. It is vintage concert t-shirt black. If it is cold enough, I do believe my powers of persuasion shall prevail.
Anyway, back to the apt kicking off. After this, I will be knitting a simple scarf for one of my sisters in a plain pale pink, then a Mary Jane’s Pithy Hat in plain cream cotton, then two replacement Blancmange beanie hats, a plain dark blue ribbed beanie, and a plain dark green watchcap with plain brown lining. I have warned Mr. Bobby that I might snap and attempt to present him with a Sensitive Thug Beanie Of Many Colors, and he has been instructed to distract me with a cheeseburger from Kiawe Grill, with bacon on it if I look particularly crazed. It may work out okay, though. My city bus commute lately has been influenced by some especially bad traffic lately – it took 45 minutes today for the express bus to make the first two stops (that is, to do the circuit around Ala Moana Center) – and I am reminded every time I try something more complicated than 2×2 ribbing that the best commute projects for me are the ones involving round after round on circular needles of stockinette or ribbing. I did a moss-stitch beret earlier this week and had to rip it back way too many times. Basic knitting is wonderful! It’s meditative! It’s soothing! It’s…well, it isn’t a Crack Seed Sunrise**, but it should make the bus commute go by faster. You may even enjoy the benefit of getting more basic beanie recipe variations here, and I’ll try to avoid writing instructions like "cast on what feels like too many stitches and knit in 1×1 rib until you want to stab things with your needles."
*Mr. Bobby refers to the crocheted cotton beanies I made him as "sensitive thugwear" because they are handmade with Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton yarn and made to be long enough to put the eyes of the wearer in shadow. Sau is getting an "Extra-Sensitive" because it is made of Peace Fleece. It may be black, but it is fuzzy, and it is striving for a better, more sensitive world.
**Crack Seed Sunrise: orange juice, lemon juice, li hing powder, and tequila. Called "crack seed" because that’s an old-time term for the kind of dried/preserved fruit candies (including li hing mui) found at, well, the crack seed store.
I don’t understand why sometimes an edit of a post will result in the post getting a new date stamp, and getting moved. I didn’t intend to move the Matilda & Tillie post; I just wanted to add a new photo to it! Hmph. Time for me to read the TypePad help stuff, I guess.
Matilda & Tillie
Peace Fleece heavy worsted weight/aran knitting yarn (70% wool, 30% mohair), 4 oz/200 yds, color of your choice
XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL (18", 20", 22", 24", 26", 27"/46, 51, 56, 61, 66, 68.5 cm)
US 6/4.0mm dpns, 1 set of 5
US 6/4.0mm circular needle (16")
US G/4.25 mm crochet hook
Hats for chilly seasons, these close-fitting wool cloche hats are designed to keep out cold and blustery winds. The heather mohair blend yarn enhances the vintage style; the crown and brim colors look subtly different depending on the angle and the light. Tiny flecks of many colors make these wearable with just about any color in your wardrobe. These hats will also travel well, easily stuffed into a coat pocket or a bag, and can be dressed up easily with pins, brooches, and other decorations.
The crown is knit from the top down, ending right above the ears. The brim is worked separately as a long bias strip with increases and decreases to shape it as you go and is sewn to the crown. A simple knit i-cord or crocheted cord trims the hat and covers the seam. Matilda has a plain brim; Tillie has a shaped brim with a knit-in hem, which can be worn with the narrow edge at the back (allowing for jacket and coat collars) or at the side for retro flair.
Left: Matilda, Peace Fleece "Tundra", size medium (22")
Right: Tillie, Peace Fleece "Zarya Fog", size medium
Peace Fleece can be purchased online directly from peacefleece.com, or from Kpixie.com or Granola Yarn.
Matilda & Tillie is now available for sale as a USD $5.50 .pdf download (you will need a PayPal account or a credit card).
The printed-on-paper pattern is available through yarn shops:
Granola Yarn
www.granolayarn.com
Granola Yarn is an online only shop and carries Peace Fleece as well as potential substitute yarns (O-Wool Classic and O-Wool Balance).
Pollywogs Yarn and Fiber
www.mypollywogs.com
7 Bush Ave.
Wayland NY 14572
phone 585-728-5667 / fax 585-728-3133
Pollywogs carries Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted and Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece, both good potential substitute yarns.
Tangle
store.tangleonline.com
140 Ouray Ave #A
Grand Junction, CO 81501
Tangle carries some of the potential substitute yarns listed in the pattern, including SWTC Karaoke and Cascade Eco Wool.
Substitute yarns:
You may substitute a worsted weight yarn on the sturdy end of the yarn spectrum; I would not recommend any soft, floppy yarns like alpaca.
Southwest Trading Co. Vickie Howell "Rock"
Hemp for Knitting "HempWol"
Cascade "Eco-Wool"
Vermont Organic Fiber Co. "O-Wool Classic" and "O-Wool Balance"
A note on gauge: Peace Fleece comes in solid, flecked, and heathered versions, which may be slightly different thicknesses, so do check your gauge and change needle sizes if necessary. The pattern is worked at a tighter than usual gauge to get a fairly dense, slightly stiffer fabric. If this is hard on your hands, be sure to take time out to rest and stretch your hands and arms!
Knitalong? There's one on Ravelry! If you'd like to start one, please feel free to!
Errata:
Corrections to the Tillie brim instructions:
begin decreases
Row 4 should begin: sl1, p2, sl marker, inc 1
begin increases:
Row 2 should begin: sl 1, p2, sl marker
Rows 26-33 (30-39, 34-45) should read:
repeat rows 24 and 25 (28 and 29, 32 and 33) [note that the chart is correct; the written instructions were incorrect]
For size X-SMALL (SMALL), row 34 should read:
repeat row 24
Corrections to the Matilda and Tillie brim instructions:
row count for both brims should be
Total brim rows: 132 (156, 168, 180, 192, 204)
Not an error, but but an omission:
Closing the gap at the top of the crown:
The
cast-on will leave a small hole at the top. After knitting the crown,
thread the tail of the cast-on through the cast-on stitches and pull
tight to close the hole. Weave in the end.
If you purchased the pattern as a download, you were sent an email with the corrected pages as a link or as an attachment. If you did not get an email/purchased a printed pattern through a shop, please email me (link in left sidebar) so that I may send you the corrected pages.
UPDATE: The Matilda and Tillie Knitalong group is up and running on Ravelry! If anyone is interested in running a knitalong for this pattern off Ravelry, please feel free to do so. I chose to host it on Ravelry because it’s easier for me to do it that way, but I don’t want knitters who aren’t on Ravelry yet to feel left out.
I’d like to start a Matilda & Tillie Knitalong group at Ravelry, but I need at least three Ravelry members to do so. Please message me at Ravelry if you are interested.
For those of you convinced you’ll never get in: rest assured, the site will be open to the general public when the founders are ready for the full launch. The site is still in beta, but getting closer every day. Want to speed it up? You may want to consider donating funds – the founders quit their jobs to devote themselves to getting Ravelry launched, and one of them has been taking on freelance work to pay the bills (which takes him away from working on Ravelry). The donate button is on the lower right side of the front page.
