Monica Knits

GSPsWe had to laugh at the unintended consequence of photographing the fun fur scarf and red coat. I hung the coat on the back fence to get good light for a photograph. The two dogs, who hadn't seen me go around the back, were soon barking and pointing at -- the coat.

Not until they came up and detected my scent on the coat did they determine it wasn't some strange new animal and start wagging their tails.

Fun is the operative word for Lion Brand's colorful "furs." I love the colors/patterns and hand and bought a few balls of yarn in 2006 to try them out. I made scarves for warm and cold weather--the yarn is versatile enough for light weight boas or, when knitted as a tube scarf, warm and attractive for winter. I ended up buying more yarn for quick gifts (large needles) after friends and family admired them and asked where they could be purchased.

Red Fun FurLion Brand Yarn Company, Fancy Fur, Rainbow red (213), Eyelash yarn, 55%:45% Nylon:Polyester 1-1/2 oz. When I'm out shopping, people often come up to me to ask where I got this scarf. See related article, Red Fancy Fur Scarf, for instructions and a photo of the scarf and coat. It was fun to knit and is fun to touch.

My husband asked me why I hadn't posted a photograph of Abby--our first dog. In this picture she is 15 years old, though she was 4 years old when we got her from Joe, the previous owner of our home. It was love at first sight. In appearance, she reminded us of the chocolate lab leader-dogs-in-training we saw on weekend walks. Read more .... about Abby.

LilacI shop on-line, by catalogue and in person.

The attached list reflects my usual purchases from the referenced companies, not the full offerings of each supplier.

Crochet NeedlesMy crochet needles range in size from 0.6 mm to 10.0 mm. From size 2.00 mm and larger, they are Aero (Abel Morrall Ltd., Redditch England, now Coats & Clark Canada Inc.) Sizes 2.00 mm - 5.00mm are aluminum and the larger sizes hard plastic. The smaller crochet needles are steel, mostly manufactured in Mexico (IMRA, S.A.), with a smattering of U.S., English and Canadian needles. Attached please find a cross-reference table from metric (mm) to US sizes, for the needles I use.

I use crochet needles for both crochet and knitting projects. If a knit project requires sewing seams, I will either crochet them, design them out or use a Kitchener stitch, as appropriate. The crocheted seam is faster, compact, looks professional and can be quickly "unzipped", if need be.

The tools that I use for projects are listed here. Knitting and crochet needles have their own separate blog entries. I will add to this basic list, as I reference tools in projects.

MarkersStitch Markers: I use two types of split ring markers, one type (white in the photo) that I really like but haven't been able to find anymore. The small white, split-ring markers are very useful when knitting and marking fingering and sport weight yarns and when using small diameter needles. The green and orange markers are better for larger diameter needles or when you want to hold a few stitches at a end of the row for completion later, or to temporarily hold a dropped a stitch. The green and orange markers are Clover Locking Stitch Markers (#353).

I like split ring markers because you can add them or remove them without being at the specific stitch. I use split ring markers for quality control, stitch pattern repeats, and as a counting aid while casting on.

The patterns are listed by garment type, then subject: accessories, baby garments, socks, tops.

1. ACCESSORIES
2. BABY GARMENTS
3. SOCKS
4. TOPS
5. CROSS STITCH

My knitting needles range in diameter from 1.5 mm to 12.0 mm, comprising straight needles (Aero, Redditch England) from 2.25 mm through 8 mm, double-pointed needles, DPNs (Aero, Knit Picks and Susan Bates), from 1.5 mm through 7.0 mm and circular needles (Knit Picks) up to size 8.0 mm. (See related article, "My Needle Choices," if you are interested in how I select needles for specific tasks.)

NEEDLE MATERIALS
From size 6.00 mm and larger, the Aero straight needles are made of stiff plastic. All the circular needles I use are nickel-plated steel from Knit Picks (fixed circular for the smaller diameters and interchangeable needle tips for the larger sizes). The only small DPNs (1.5 mm - 2.25 mm) I found were Susan Bates' needles of anodized aluminum. These are conveniently colored to make it easy to distinguish among the small needles. Other than the small diameter needles, any DPNs I have purchased recently to satisfy a project need are nickel-plated steel needles from Knit Picks.

I inherited a set of long, straight, plastic needles in sizes up to 6.0 mm (unknown manufacturer) that I find too flexible (hence too slow) for most knitting purposes, other than for casting on or for holding stitches. These are not included in the attached cross-reference table.

Round and round, or not?
Top-down or bottom-up?
To swatch or not to swatch.
Visual cable design short-cuts.
Making-up.
Using a spread-sheet to create charts for stitch patterns.
Designing for warmth.

Attached I have included stitch patterns shown in projects referenced in this blog. The stitches are organized by type: basics, cables, lace, ribs and trim. Stitch libraries that I like are found in the Favorite Books section.

1. Basics
2. Cables
3. Decreases
4. Increases
5. Lace
6. Ribs
7. Trim