Knitting Friday

Until the U.S. election is over next Tuesday, November 4th, if I drank I would be drinking constantly; if I ate, I would be eating non-stop. I'm that concerned about the outcome. I'm enough a student of history to know that bad things can happen next Tuesday and Barack Obama may not be our next President. But I'm also enough of a selfish human to want some peace in a rational, caring government after so many years in greedy, capitalistic hell.

So, I knit and watch public domain movies as I cruse the web. Or I knit and watch lousy movies which come with a Verizon package which was not very expensive and which I now understand why that is.

But, on to Knitting Friday.

I learned this week that you can make Wisp from Knitty:

http://knitty.com/ISSUEsummer07/PATTwisp.html

in a very substantial looking wool so you have an non-wispy look but still a nice lace motif.

I learned that the above Wisp can be knit as an triangular shawl easily but modifying it into a bias knit rectangular shawl is going to take some fudging, for which I don't have time at the present.

However, for Knitting Friday, I thought I would share a knitter’s dilemma: the small amounts of yarn left over from previous projects. Books are written with suggested solutions, a website is dedicated to knitting with leftover yarn starting as little as 1 yard.

Out of leftover yarn, I have crocheted the warmest blankets imaginable using a spiral square motif. I’ve knitted countless mitered shawls out of odd-ball yarn and a circular shawl/throw from the most hideous shades of leftover gold wool. What was I thinking with that purchase?

The most important part of this odd ball knitting is to join the pieces of yarn before you start. Don’t leave ends to be woven in later. Instead, Russian join your acrylic yarns or splice your wool - at least 40% wool content - yarn. (A word an splicing; it’s called spit splicing for obvious reasons but I like to use a small water sprayer.) In the end, you should have a big ball of variegated yarn. I had one the size of a basketball, which was cumbersome.

You may want to group your colors together as you join them. I’m working in all greens at present and staying in one color family has its advantages. Or, you could join the reds, then the browns, then the blues (you decide on the sequence) for a big ball.

Since you probably won’t be wearing this to the Prince’s Ball, use your larger needles, even with fine wool, for fast knitting. (See below for possible exceptions.)

At this point, you can head to the Internet and find any shawl pattern and start knitting. It’s that easy. But don’t limit yourself to shawls. I’ve made sweaters with this yarn. You could make socks, decorations, toys......it’s imagination time.

For Knitting Friday next week, gather all your supplies together and I’ll give you a pattern I developed for leftover yarn.

Happy Knitting.