Playing with stitches

I've been playing with knitted cables... all kinds of cables. My knitting is not as strong as my crochet, but I want to learn to master those scary little terrors and I've actually been having some fun! :-) I try to catch reruns of this show called Knitty Gritty and saw an episode with the talented Lily Chin who was showing how to make an heirloom baby blanket with these awesome looking blocks. She described how to make one of the blocks with a little cable that is actually reversible! I have found myself quite addicted to these and even though I tear out more than create - because those gosh darn little needles keep slipping off and dropping stitches to the cast on row. I just have to get used to holding on to three needles - two regular ones plus the cable stitch holder thingy - with two hands. I feel that I need to grow a third hand to help me so that those stitches don't jump off. :-)

I've also been playing with color.... oh boy have I been playing with color. If I never play with black and white yarn it will be too soon!!! I found some cool looking stitches in a couple of my stitch books that I'm playing with - but on my some of these are hard! How the heck do I make a k1, p1, k1 in the same stitch!!! I usually tighten up so badly that by the time I get to that last k1 I'm about to break the yarn. :-) Well, like any learning experience, practice will make these easier.... I hope. :-)

So, going back to crochet - I'm finishing up some designs that I should have finished documenting a few days ago. Instead I'm playing with stitches! But they really are almost done and I'll be glad to see those prototypes disappear for a while. They are made in black and white stripes!!! I've been working with so much B&W that I think I'm color blind now. I accidentally put on a black shoe and navy blue shoe on this morning! Then I dressed my poor little son in a red and blue t-shirt with green socks! My brain is getting a little crazy so I guess I need to take a little bit of a break and design in different colors! :-) :-) :-)

Okay, back to the grindstone.
Take care,
Pinka

Finished!

I finally finished my little beaded knitting purse! I sewed on the straps last night and wrote up the pattern. Oh my! The fabric feels so good! Knit fabric already feels really soft, but when you add beads, that bit of weight makes it feel slinky like... and really delicate. I love the way beaded knitting fabric feels - even though I bead crochet way more. But this little knit purse will hardly hold anything because it will stretch - which is my experience with knit purses unless it's felted. I guess that's why I like to bead crochet more for my purses. I think I'll try to make another version in crochet and see how it looks.

This is so hard to design something but not be able to post pictures. I have so many little purses that I've been having so much fun with and not being able to really share them with anyone is just about to kill me! :-)

But I do promise that once these little treasures start getting published that I will share as much information as I can. :-) I wonder now how long that process takes? That and so many more questions from this designer newbie. :-)

Take care