I received this question as a comment on one of my youtube videos. I am guessing it’s from someone outside the U.S., but the commenter didn’t share her location.:
“…we have some local yarn here with no instrctions abt guage and other things.. wht shld we do in such case??? how can we find guage then?? ”
Here’s my reply:
There are a couple of ways to judge “mystery yarn.” One way is wraps per inch. There is a good explanation of it on a site called knitchat. That post will give you a symbol/number that corresponds to the wraps per inch.
Once you know the weight of the yarn, you can go to the Craft Yarn Council site to see recommendations on needle size and gauge.
It’s important to emphasize that these are guidelines, not commandments. The key is to achieve a knitted fabric that you like and that feels right for the project you have in mind. Some projects, like outerwear, may work best with a firmer knitted fabric, while others, like a scarf, may be more comfortable with a looser, airier fabric, even though they might be worked from the same yarn.
I have a couple other tips on working with mystery yarn that I’ll share in my next post.
I tend not to post any videos but my own, but this video on the tulip buttonhole from Interweave knits is not to be missed. If you’ve tried making a decent buttonhole, you’ll see the value in this immediately. It looks like a little trouble, but the result is so worth it.
I’m from Seattle, one of the nation’s hotbeds of New Age thought (what my husband calls woo-woo). Now, I love this stuff as much as the next person, but I often find the writing in these publications to be, well, turgid. But I picked up a copy of the New Spirit Journal anyway, a local woo-woo newspaper, because it was free. Nestled between articles entitled “Our Animal Friends” and “What Does Your Forehead Reveal About You?”, I found the following, which I thought was lovely, and that I want to share. Part of it, anyway.
There’s nothing you need to become, nothing that needs to happen, in order for you to be happy. Happiness is simply a choice. Let go of the “when/then” game: When I lose 10 pounds, then I’ll be happy. When I know my purpose, then I’ll be happy.
Here’s the deal: happiness doesn’t come when you’ve achieved your goals; it’s what allows you to achieve them. The happiness that you seek is not the reward waiting for you at the end of your journey. It’s what makes the journey possible in the first place.”
My “takeaway” from this is to not beat myself up over imperfections, like the speed at which this site is coming together. I’m a WordPress newbie–’nough said.
What I hope to share soon are photos of the sweaters I am working on. Besides the one that I am knitting in the videos (still in progress!) I am working on a cowl neck for another niece in a very nice medium gray Cascade 220 and one for myself in Katmandu tweed in an eggplant color. Never mind the stuff I’ve bought with no plan in mind–maybe I’ll show that later and take suggestions.
Walker, Barbara G. A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. Pittsville, WI: Schoolhouse Press, 1998. 301 pp. When you’re ready to try stitch patterns, this is the book to turn to. This, and Walker’s sequels: A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns, A Third.., A Fourth…. And just when you think there aren’t any more patterns, look at….
Walker, Barbara. Mosaic Knitting. Pittsville, WI: Schoolhouse Press, 2006. 259 pp. A huge collection of color patterns that use slipped stitches rather than intarsia or Fair Isle. No carrying yarn across the back of the piece.
Internet KNITTING ON THE NET offers very handy charts of estimated yarn requirements. YOUTUBE: an ever-changing variety of knitting videos. Search on “knitting”.
DVD’s Lucy Neatby has produced excellent videos loaded with tips and techniques.
Instructors
Your local yarn store (LYS) is an excellent place to get instruction and advice, as well as yarn.
Resources Used in Making The Videos Posted on This Site
January 3rd, 2009
Books
Righetti, Maggie. Sweater Design in Plain English. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1990. 406 pp. The author is very knowledgeable and very encouraging.
Michelson, Carmen and Mary-Ann Davis. The Knitter’s Guide to Sweater Design. Loveland, CO: Interweave Press, 1989. 398 pp. More than you ever wanted to know about sweater design. Possibly out of print, this exhaustive source includes numerous graphs and charted patterns.
Buss, Katharina. Big Book of Knitting. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 2001. Originally published in German, this English version is one of my favorite reference books.
Internet KNITTING HELP: An excellent series of free videos showing knitting basics and beyond.
Instructors Susanna Hansson, an expert knitter and fabulous teacher with a special talent in Scandinavian knitting techniques.
What do the videos on this site show?
The video tutorials demonstrate the steps in designing and knitting a woman’s pullover sweater with set-in sleeves. Topics include:
Taking measurements
Knitting a swatch and determining your stitch gauge
Knitting the sweater body
Shaping the armholes
Knitting the v-neck
How to shape the shoulders using short rows
Back neck shaping & seaming shoulders with a three-needle bind off
Knitting a picked-up, top-down sleeve
Picking up and knitting the neckline ribbing & finishing the sweater
Later I hope to add more videos about designing other sweater styles.
I don’t know what some of those terms mean…short rows?
I demonstrate all of these techniques in the videos.
Can I learn to knit using these videos?
These videos are not intended to teach the novice how to knit. A great place to learn the basics online is at www.knittinghelp.com.
Do I need to be an expert knitter to do this?
I’m not. I’ve taught this method to beginning knitters who had not done much more than hats and scarves.
I do have a reason, actually. I am creating videos showing a simple way to design and knit sweaters and I want a place to add info, share thoughts and get feedback from anyone who happens to stumble upon this site.
So, who am I? Just a lowly knitter–not an expert, just someone who is frustrated and who thought there must be a better way. I’ve read books on sweater design and taken classes, and some parts of it are very straightforward (like knitting the body), and then suddenly you hit an amorphous part (like drafting a sleeve cap). Next thing you know you’re up to your tuchus in knitter’s graph paper and design software.
Since one of the reasons I like knitting is that it is low tech, I’m not too excited about knitter’s software, however good it is. Knitting is a respite from all the things in my life that flash and ring and beep at me.
My frustrations started me testing different methods. When I came to one of the gray areas, I looked for a way to create a formula, system or template that would provide a straightforward way to navigate that part of the sweater. Most of what I show in the videos are well-documented design methods. In a couple of places I deconstructed patterns to figure out a formula.
What I ended up with is a system. In large part you can design the sweater as you go, rather than try to do all the calculations at the start, which, again, can make you sorry you ever tried it.
This site is under construction. I will be posting the videos as I complete them–I’m working on them as fast as I can, but family, day job, and life in general occasionally intrude. So, watch the videos, give me your feedback, share your tips, and please, if you knit a sweater using this method, send me a photo–I would love to share it on the site, along with your comments.
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