Friday, January 15, 2016

Winter Wool

One weekend in November, while all my friends and fellow college students were studying for exams, I went to get coffee with my cousin just to chat. All of a sudden I just really wanted to knit. I'm not sure where it came from, but it was sudden and strong. The best part about the whole situation was that I didn't even have exams to study for (thanks to online classes, a cancelled exam, and education classes without them at all!) so I had time for some fun with yarn. Fortunately for me, my crafty cousin also felt the desire, so off to Michaels we went.

My grandmother, whom I now live with, taught me to knit when I was younger (late elementary I'm guessing). It's one of those things that I've never put much time or effort into though. I do it when I feel like it, without stressing over a "perfect" product, intricate detail, or consistency. While part of me hopes I never lose that carefree, fun aspect, I also would like to start learning some new stitches and do it more often. Any suggestions on videos or books for learning new stitches and styles?

Anyways, back to that December morning. My knitting supplies were at home, so I needed both needles and yarn on our Michaels venture. I always love a good neutral or jewel tone, and own enough scarves that I have almost every color covered. However, I've never had a burgundy scarf, so that's the color I chose! While I've used several kinds of yarn in the past, thick wool is my favorite. Specifically, ever since that day, I've been loving "Lion Brand Yarns Wool-Ease." I selected metal size 15/10.00 mm needles. The photo below is of the finished product! I cast on 30 stitches and knit until I liked how long it was when I wrapped it around my neck. It took almost two skeins. After casting off, I used a plastic needle and some of the leftover yarn to sew the two ends together. To avoid knots on either end, I left tails and wove them in to knot them where they would not be visible.


This scarf was also made with "Lion Brand Yarns Wool-Ease." However, instead of needles I used a "Rectangular Loom Set" by "Stitch Studio." The rectangle I chose had spots for 24 stitches across. Despite having less stitches across, the loom made a thicker scarf, which also meant that it took almost three skeins instead of two. If you're looking for an extra warm scarf, it is worth it to use a loom! 


Like I mentioned earlier, I'm usually drawn to neutrals. However, once I finished the two previous scarves I decided to change things up a bit and use bright pink yarn! I'm loving it so far! This style will be a bit different than the others. I cast on 17 stitches and plan to make it long enough to wrap around my neck twice. 


Have you knitted anything recently, or found inspiration around you to begin? I'd love to hear about it!

--Emily