Sunday Morning Knit Wit ~ Knitting with Beads

Good Morning!  When we last left off, I was working on a pair of Two at at Time Toe Up socks.  After working on them for 2 weeks, I finally decided to rip them out and move on to another project.  Maybe if I try again from scratch I will have better luck with them.

So for now, I have redirected my efforts on learning how to knit with beads. I have several shawl patterns lined up in which I want to add beads, so I thought I would practice on a scarf before I tried the shawls. 

I'm using a method that my close friend, April has described during our knitting group and I think it is much easier than stringing the beads on the yarn.  You will need a very small crochet hook (I'm using size 2.  I can't tell what alpha size it is, but you will get the idea from the photos... it is very, very small).

After charting out the pattern and determining where bead placement, have a small bowl filled with the beads and the crochet hook handy.

When you are ready to place the bead follow the steps below:
1) Put the bead on the crochet hook

2) Pull the working stitch off the left hand needle with the crochet hook:

3) Slip the bead off the hook and onto the working stitch:

4) Place the working stitch back on to the left hand needle:

5) Knit the stitch and continue with pattern.

So far, I am really enjoying knitting with beads in this method.  For this project I am using a very delicate lace weight mohair yarn and size 3 knitting needles.  Because the mohair is so extremely light and almost weight-less, the beads are adding some weight which I think will make the scarf more practicle for daily use. 

I hope you will give this a try and let me know what you think!  April - thanks so much for sharing your technique with me!  Once this scarf is done, I'm going to cast on the "Dog Gone Lifeline Shawl" and add some beads to it!

I also finished spinning 4 oz of this wonderful mohair wool blend this week.  The colors are amazing when looked at closely with shades of blues and bits of lavenders and purples.  It is about a fingering weight yarn and I think will make a lovely wrap. ... another project on my to do list!

Enjoy your week and Happy Knitting! 

It Pays to Experiment~~

Presenting my newest bowl titled "Poppies". It is made with a new found technique that gives stability and thickness.

For quite awhile I have been trying different ways to make my felted bowls stonger, thicker and overall sturdier. And I think I just found the easiest way. So easy, in fact, that I am hand slapping my forhead as if I should have had a V8. And there is an added bonus of terrific color enhancements with this method as well.

Normally I would use one strand of worsted weight wool yarn and work my magic. This does produce a great felted fiber in the end, but for vessels and bowls, I would prefer a thicker stronger fiber. I've made a few bowls in which I would crochet double length, fold them over and sew them together to form double thickness as in this bowl:


This method takes alot of calculating as one side needs to be a bit smaller than the other, but does have a great result.

I have also tried crocheting two strands of worsted weight together which works ok... but doesn't felt with that finished look that I like so much.

My amazingly simple discovery is that by crocheting one strand of worsted weight along with a strand of fingering weight will give that little bit extra to the product that gives the bowl added stability and helps keep their shape. The bonus is that I now feel like a painter mixing my paints because combining different color shades gives the bowl it's own unique colors!

I start with two strands of wool ~ one worsted weight and one fingering weight


I changed my hook from H to J


And then I go to town:


The colors will blend during the felting process so the individual stitches and colors will not be visable when completed. I used two different yellows in Poppies, and as you can see, the shades blend to form one color with a bit of heathered look.

So, now I have met one of my 2009 resolutions (finding ways to improve my products) and it is only January 3rd! Can you see my smile? I have a beautiful green one drying now that will be posted later this week.

Hoping you will come visit me on etsy, artfire and shophandmade to view my new work during 2009