Knitting Continues on the KAL

It's so easy to just pick up the needles and knit.

KAL with Donna Druchunas

I'm participating in a Mystery Mitten KAL on Ravelry with Donna Druchunas.

Words to describe my wool:

• from Belfast mini mills
• my homespun
• Navajo or chain ply
• worsted weight
• warm colours
• not enough contrast
• doesn't match anything I have

Progress so far on mitts:

The Roving. Merino, Silk, Cashmere, Mohair

The Single

My Norwegian Wheel

 I have a corner in my kitchen where I placed the dog beds. It's in the above picture behind the wheel and at the window. It was easy to put the dogs' place there, but I really intended it for a wheel and chair. I haven't decided what I will do.

And now it's time for a tea and either a little knitting or some spinning since I managed to spend the morning on my computer.

It's nice to have something I can show for the results of the day. And my looms are awaiting attention. I have a small floor loom I would like to get a scarf warp on this week.

For the Hands

I've been knitting these using a fingering weight cabled yarn I bought on a cone with unknown fibre content. I did a burn test and there is wool in it because it self extinguished.

I would probably never knit a mitt using anything without wool in it just for the warmth factor alone.

I love playing with colour, whether it's yarn, dye, fiber or paint and decided right now that I would like to produce some mittens.

My favourite knitting projects are sweater, socks, mittens, and fingerless gloves. Scarves are too boring because there is no shaping usually and I'm not into shawls too much-I'd rather weave them.

One of my favourite books for mittens is Robin Hansens 'Favorite Mittens'.
Here is a project I made from that book.

p. 142. Chipman's Check Wristers

And these are Deep Ocean Mitts from 'Alterknit Stitch Dictionary' by Andrea Rangel.

Colourwork Mittens

I am currently working on 'Deep Ocean Mittens' from the Alterknit Stitch Dictionary by Andrea Rangel.
A little bit of a challenge, but I think I've got the hang of it.

Topside of Deep Ocean Mitt

Palm of Deep Ocean Mitt

Here is an update. I just finished the right mitt. This shows it not yet wet finished, so I expect the stiches to move around and even themselves up. The yarn I am using is a mystery yarn. The structure of it is cabled - which means that it is 2 two ply yarns plied together to make one very strong yarn. It is fingering weight and suspecting it is wool or at least a wool blend, I did a burn test on a piece of it.

After lighting it with a match, it self extinguished very quickly. The ash was black and melted a little, so there must be some nylon in it. It is a worsted spin and the stitch and colour definition in the mitten is really nice for showing off the two colours.

My two colour knitting technique needs some practice and refining.

I love the thumb knitting here.

Update on Clun Forest Mittens

In the little time off work, I managed to spin a little for the mittens - enough to get started knitting until I spin more in between spinning for my class work.
Pictures show the progress:

Plying in progress.

Making a skein on the niddy.

 

 

Washed, set, and dried.

When the skein came off the niddy, it looked overtwisted. Before I plied it, I let it ply back on itself to see how it should be plied. Information told me to ply at 4 tpi (twists per inch), so that is just what I did. On the niddy it was definitely overtwisted, but after washing it I had a balanced skein.