Weekly Update - Bright Feathers & Tech Support

I got some more done on Bright Feathers:

I'm almost done with Tech Support, a design by Linda Connors of Calico Crossroads®, adapted from the artwork of Kathleen Kelly of Kats by Kelly™. I just have a little bit of backstitching, a few straight stitches, and 12 french knots (ugh) left.

Weekly Update - Bright Feathers & Tech Support

I finished the top border of Bright Feathers.

I also made good progress on Tech Support, a design by Linda Connors of Calico Crossroads®, adapted from the artwork of Kathleen Kelly of Kats by Kelly™.

Finished - Dishcloths & UFO - Tech Support

I finished 2 dishcloths. That’s all I’m going to do for now.

I wanted another small, simple project to work on along with Bright Feathers (note to self: never design such a big, boring-to-stitch pattern again), so I picked up yet another UFO: Tech Support, a design by Linda Connors of Calico Crossroads®, adapted from the artwork of Kathleen Kelly of Kats by Kelly™.

Here’s what I had already done on it:

New Project & Free Pattern - Dishcloth

I need some dishcloths, so I started knitting some. They’re as simple as it gets – just a garter stitch square knitted on the bias.

This is one of those ubiquitous patterns that get handed down through the generations, but in case you haven’t run across it yet, here it is:

With worsted weight cotton yarn and whatever size needles feel right to you* cast on 3 stitches.

Row 1: Knit.

Row 2: Inc by knitting into the front & back of the 1st stitch, knit across to last stitch, inc by knitting into the front & back of the last stitch.

Repeat rows 1 & 2 until the dishcloth is the size you want, ending on row 2.

Row 3: Knit.

Row 4: Ssk, knit across to last stitch, k2tog.

Repeat rows 3 & 4 until you have 3 stitches left, then bind off and weave in the ends.

I like to mark which side I do the increases and decreases on so that I don’t have to count rows.

*Gauge isn’t important on this project, so it doesn’t matter much what size needles you use. I used a size 10, but I knit loosely. You might want to try a size 11 or 12.

New Design - Tessellation

Yes, I do like bright colors and geometric designs.

Tessellation - computer simulation

Weekly Update - Bright Feathers & Purple Passage

Here’s my progress on Bright Feathers:

I’ve finished stitching Purple Passage from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly. It only took me two weeks to stitch a 15”x18” piece of 14-ct. aida.

New Design - Crosses

Here’s a blackwork design that I did back in April. I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to post it.

Crosses - Computer Simulation

You should be able to see squares and diagonal lines between the crosses. This can also be viewed like a stereogram: cross or unfocus your eyes slightly until you see a 3D effect.  It might help to open the image in a new tab or window.

Monk's cloth

I decided to start preparing the monk’s cloth I bought to make a Swedish weaving afghan. This is going to take me a while since I do all my sewing by hand (I just don’t get along with sewing machines), and I don’t plan to work on it constantly.

The first thing the instructions in Marilyn T. Magly’s books say to do is square off the ends of your fabric by pulling out threads until you get to one that goes all the way across. I started to do that, but soon realized that not only would it take forever, but that I would end up wasting a huge amount of fabric.

So, I found the first thread that went all the way across the fabric, cut along the line of holes one thread closer to the edge in case my scissors slipped, and then pulled the thread.

This piece of fabric was incredibly crooked. I don’t think the manufacturer even tried to cut it reasonably straight. I was left with two good-sized scraps of fabric. To give you some sense of size, the larger piece is 5 ¼” at the widest point, not including the shredded bit.

The next step is to either machine stitch around the edges or to hand baste a hem in order to prevent the fabric from raveling when you wash it (prewashing is necessary because the fabric shrinks). Starting with the narrow cut ends of the fabric (there are selvedges on both lengthwise edges), I folded the edge of the fabric up and temporarily pinned it in place. Since these are strictly temporary hems which will be ripped out later, I made no attempt to make them even and I didn’t press them.

Then, I folded the edges again so that the raw edges were hidden inside the hem, repositioning the pins as I went. 

The next step will be to hand baste those hems in place. I plan to hem the selvedges as well, since I’ve heard that – unlike those on most fabrics – the selvedges on monk’s cloth will fray. Looking at them, I don’t find that hard to believe.

The next step after that will be to machine wash and dry the fabric. I also plan to hem the scraps and wash them at the same time since they’re large enough to be useful. At the very least, I could cross stitch a few bookmarks.

Weekly Update - Bright Feathers & Purple Passage

Okay, it looks like my weekly updates are going to be Wednesday or Thursday.

Here’s my progress on Bright Feathers:

I’m halfway done with Purple Passage from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly.

The only thing that I don’t like about Swedish weaving is that it’s too darned fast. I’m seriously wondering if I’m going to be able to keep enough materials on hand to keep me busy.

Weekly Update - Bright Feathers & Purple Passage

Here’s my progress so far on Bright Feathers:

And on Purple Passage from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly:

Finished - Feathers To and Fro Towel, New Project - Purple Passage

On Monday I finished the towel using part of the Feathers To and Fro pattern from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly.

 

I’ve revised my opinion of the Charles Craft towel a bit upwards: after washing, the appearance improved greatly and you can’t even see the snags from the packaging anymore. However, the towel is too small and thin to be anything but decorative. If I want more practical towels I’ll have to buy some huck fabric and make my own.

My next Swedish weaving project is Purple Passage from Learn to Make Monk’s Cloth Afghans by Marilyn T. Magly. I’m stitching it on a 15”x18” piece of 14-ct. turquoise aida using purple shades of #5 perle cotton. (Note: My camera refused to photograph these colors correctly, so I’ve had to adjust them manually. So, if you notice any discrepancies in color amongst these pictures, that’s why.)

Here’s what I had done as of Monday:

I still plan to post a weekly update later today.