Jade's darkness, the story

So, joining the shawl knitter group in rav seems to expose me to some trending designers and/or pattern. 

Currently, i have a chance to try out out of darkness.

I used my stashed knitpicks yarn, wool + silk, laceweight and really soft. I like the fact that it is very light in my hands. For this project (without beads), i am happily use less than 1 ball. So yes, this is a one skein wonder. And this means thatvthe shawl weight is less than 50 grams.

About the pattern

Oh, well... I should say that it is written out easy, so it's quite simple to follow. The beading directions also clear, so it's easy for even a beginner... 

But, as an exclusive pattern (trending and it's not that cheap either), I was wishing that more guidance should be provided. I was stumbled with the fact that the picot edging was not detailed much. As in, you just dont know whether it is aligned plor not. Indeed, the picot edging would not matter if it is aligned or not, but if this detail is perfect, you'll be appreciating the design more. 

But all in all, i give this pattern a... 4 out of 5?

Indecisive

Not sure which one to choose.

(What is this smell? *on mrt with weird smells around)

On to the next one: test knit Katu

Swatching and getting ready.

What's on my needle, w4 june

As a part of my destashing program, i am knitting my stash as much as i can. 

I have cleared up some of my yarn from LYS in bandung, not because i dont like it, but i try to rationalize the possibilities of me having time to knit them. (Or crochet)

Anyways, i have 3 wips in hand. 

This project is made by altering the original shape of the pattern. I disliked the yarn color, but didnt have a choice but to buy it since the color (that person) needed was not available, and then nobody wants it here, so i'd better use it. I am 2 rows away from binding off and in danger of running out of yarn. 

Second one is the sequined yarn that i bought on sale for abt SG$ 3.6 each ball. Nice red color, so tempting, too bad i only have 450 m-ish, so i cant make anything big. I have knitted 60%, and i can see myself finishing the project this month.

Third one is a lovely request from a lovely person. The pattern is a knock out from another cowl pattern by a famous designer, i made the calculation myself and adjust into the yarn and also an approx of his size (if i still remember well).

So, next project in mind is:

Alohura from mawelucky (oh, did i tell you all that i won her pattern?). I chose this pattern because not much people knit this  pattern yet (7 project finished so far), so i am happy to be the 8th knitter.

I am planning to use.... Either one of my silks or one of my cotton viscose.

Test knit for my dear friend kessa. I'm still browsing my yarn whether i can use them for the project. Will need to swatch. She still open the tester recruitment, so see the project and talk to her if you are interested.

Red soy cardi - bahasa Indonesia

Beberapa waktu yang lalu, mbak octy ngasih benang baru buat dicoba. Benang acrylic gitu, 100%, dk weight (or maybe fat sporty?). Lumayan banyak, satu hank besar total 300 gram, lah. Di kepala langsung komat kamit ngitung, cukup buat apa ya? Akhirnya waktu itu langsung memutusksn untuk buat short cardigan.

Soal benang

Benangnya ok. Ga gampang rusak pilinannya. Waktu harus rip off juga benangnya ga kenapa-kenapa. Jadi benangnya ok bahkan untuk temen2 yang baru mulai main benang. Berhubung saya nyobainnya buat knitting, teksturnya halus untuk ukuran acrylic. Nggak berserabut, jadi juga ga gampang "murudul". Waktu masih dalam bentuk benang (belum di knit), tampangnya aja udah meyakinkan. Aku coba tes ke beberapa teman foreigner yang juga perajut, mereka ga percaya kalau benangnya acrylic. Mereka pikir itu katun. Soalnya lebih halus dari kebanyakan acrylic and agak 'berat'.

Benangnya sendiri bervolume. Jadi bukan benang yang kalau dipencet jadi kempes. Keuntungan benang dk yang memang dk asli, kalau udah jadi project-nya, dia gak akan berubah bentuk dengan drastis. Apalagi kalau sudah mulai dipakai dan sering dicuci.

Kalau soal blocking, biasanya saya menyarankan steam block untuk acrylic. Tapi untuk yang satu ini, wet block ternyata sudah cukup. Mungkin karena "berat" si benang juga. Untuk merapikan stitch, cukup dengan menarik-narik si hasil rajutan ke segala arah sebelum dan sesudah dicuci.

Saya pakai jarum 3 mm buat project ini, tapi saya saran untuk pakai 3.5 - 4 mm aja. Harusnya sih masih lebih bagus, soalnya saya ngerasa kalau pakai 3 mm, stitchnya agak terlalu rapat. Nanti gaugenya saya update di sini ya...

Soal project:

Link untuk pattern project yang saya kerjakan ada di sini. Gratis!

Saya pilih pattern top down karena mudah dan ngga perlu sambung kanan kiri. Karena mulainya dari lingkar dalam leher, jadi berasa ngga mudeng, bentuknya tuh gimana sih? Tapi ya akhirnya ketemu juga setelah polanya dipelototin selama beberapa jam.

Ini waktu masih berbentuk 2 dimensi,

Dan yang ini waktu armholenya (lubang lengan) disambung dan mulai terlihat bentuk 3-Dnya.

Saya suka metode top-down, soalnya baju bisa dicoba2 sambil terus dirajut.

Terus, sayang banget saya ga sempet bikin short rows buat ngebentuk bagian dada (hmmm, penting bagi mereka yang dianugrahi volume di bagian dada). Tapi ternyata jatuhnya ya masih ok-ok aja. Flap buat kancing saya perlebar, supaya kasih ruang buat dada kalau2 ukuran yang saya buat itu ngga cukup. Tapi, saya malah jadi ngga kontrol jumlah kancing. Kancingnya kebanyakan! Harusnya sih, 6-8 kancing juga cukup ^^.

Ini waktu baru selesai mengerjakan kedua lengan, tapi ribbing buat kancing dan kerah belum dirajut:

Ini setelah kancing dipasang dan si cardi lagi di wet blocking.

Dan ini setelah jadi, dipakai oleh mbak model :p

Semoga posting saya bermanfaat!

Red soy cardi

So, my friend gave me her new line of yarn, made from 100% acrylic and it is approximately dk weight. Red color, so daring and bold, and i promised her to write a review.

In this post, i'll talk about the project.

The pattern itself is pretty clear and straightforward. I chose top down since it is relatively simple and less parts joining involved. FYI, i dont like joining parts, so most of the time, i'll do some tricks so that i dont need to do it.

It was quite easy. I didnt get the hang of how it was constructed, so it take a while to stare and imagine the knitting for this pattern. I finally dare to do it and casted on. 

I used the acrylic yarn and a 3 mm needles, which i think is a big mistake. I should've gone to 3.5 mm to 4 mm instead. Knitting with small needle on a considered-bulky yarn is really tiring.

This is how it looks like when i haven't shape it into two armholes:

And this is after joining the armholes part.

Quite easy, i just don't like the fact that i have to rib and made buttonholes. This is my firstime making buttonholes, by the way. Easy but so much hassle! Not to mention with the "worms" after you add the buttons... I should've gone to smaller number of buttons. I put 13. Should've put 6-8 only. Haiz...

Here's after i finished the body. I didnt make any shaping for the bust, and felt bad about it. I should've made one. 

And here's after the buttons and collar was made.

And the end...

Snack doily, the story

Finally i finished the doily!

I made this doily since my friend who owned a yarn store is holding a CAL for this doily. I decided to join and immediately pick one of my cotton #20 stash. The brand was "enjoy" and it was made from japan. No idea how or where did i bought it.

First glance was ok and immediately casted on, from the center. Which is a big mistake. I should start from the edge. I was insisting that i still can manage (which i think is true), but realized after making the center and 2 edgings, i will not make it to the end. So i stopped while trying to remember where did i buy the yarn.

That was april, and near to end of may, i am yet to find the yarn. So i decided to use a new yarn, which i bought 2 balls, assuming it was enough. Now i was starting from the edge, and combine the second edge, but realized there are mistakes within the edge itself. So i stopped again and restart on 27 may.

Knowing the mistakes now (hey, i did twice already), so i decided to make 5 independent edges and combined later. That way proven to be faster. I finished crocheting the body by 4 june, incorporating the center and then go to the circular edge with picots. Finished in 3 days since i forgot to bring my needles to office and late nights, my sister keeps bugging me.

As mentioned on my previous post, i found out that i left one stitch during combining. So, i made some adjustments and hoping that people will not notice. It still looks ok, just a bit off centered on the binding part.

Blocking:

Washing in normal detergent and rinse. Soak in 1 teaspoon of starch, added with just enough warm water to dissolve and just enough cold water to soak. No rinse and bloat the excess water using towel and start to pin out. 

So, after the blocking, here's the result.

The result is still create a little drape, better than i thought. I must learn better techniques in blocking circular shape, i am really bad in this, i think my doily is not fully "circle". Realized that i missed 1 set of picot in one place and another, and then realized that some part was blocked in an overlapped manner. So... Yes, it's not a perfect circle. I may need to buy a fabric with measurement grid on it. 

Anyhow... It was a pleasant crochet. Was surprised that actually it came out quicker than i thought. And then the result was better than i thought. My first time of doing a joining in doily. Feeling a bit annoyed that the chart did not chart the steps of crocheting (or they did, but i dont know japanese). But all in all, this is a great break from knitting shawls.

Now i am back with my expanded try out of a shawl. Hopefully this will work. 

Snack doily, blocking

Finally, on my blocking mat.

Snack doily: honest mistake

As usual, whenever i have a pattern with me, i tend to make an obviously stupid mistake and in the end... Had to do all sorts of creativity to mend it.

Lucky, this time the mistake was not that bad, and i can still mend it and hide the mistake.

Let me show you where.

Here's the correct chart:

i forgot to make that 6 trebble (is it trebble? I dont know what's the "word" for that stitch. I dont do written text pattern for crochet). I should've crochet it when i joined the sides. But i totally forgot on all sides.

So, i decided to make the 6 trebble from a modified branched trebble. All crochet from the center doily. 

Can you see? 

Snack doily: almost there...

I am almost there...

I just cant wait to finish and get on to s new project...

Spin some yarn

I finally learn how to spin yarn!

Astried was nice enough to encourage me and lending me her spindle (drop) to learn for the few first ones. She also sent some fiber leftovers to me so that i can play with them. It was fun.

I got a hang of it in a while and immediately spun quite "stable" yarn, but i still trying to understand the fiber behaviour. Some of the fiber i tried were long and sticky, some are short and "dry", or even long and bumpy. I dont know if my words are comprehendable, but alas! I started spinning.

I have yet to depart on my first full 100 gram spinning, but i have tried some fibers. I am not that good yet, but so willing to learn and now i am looking for sometime to squeeze the 100 gram spinning into my schedule.

I bought a cheap spindle. After i used them (both cost only US$ 15), i really like it! The wood is soft and stable. Really like the way it feels on my hands.

And, these are my first handspuns. Only 5-10 grams, not much, but i am learning. 

Looking forward for more handspun projects.

Snack time, doily time

My friend was inviting me to join her CAL and i was tempted with the beauty of the doily that she showed. I joined, and even though i an now past the deadline, i am still eager to finish the project. It is snacking time compared to my other projects, but doesnt mean it requires less commitment.

Long story short, after i casted on and finished about 2 side parts and 1 middle part, i just realized that my yarn is not enough. How foolish... It was april by the way. And then, i decided to look for a similar one, and found Corona #20 white color at golden dragon. But... I made too many mistakes with the old one, and finally gave up and restart on 27 may. Deadline is 31 may. Way to go, tya...

So, without further ado, i crochet on and on and... Now i am 2 side leaves left and 1 center away from a finished doily. 

Wish me luck to finish this thing by this midweek.