Le Tissier Designs

Of Larks and Linnets and Flying Fingers

Category: cowls

  • A Day to Dye

    A Day to Dye

    I haven’t dyed any yarn in a while. And I have had a particular project in mind for a while. I am thinking of teaching the moebius cast-on again, but I want to keep the knitting simple, a textured yarn with great coloures seemed to be the best way to go! So I am going to while away the day preparing for and then starting the project. First to dye the yarn.

    The Yarn

    I got the yarn prepped and dyed before breakfast. Right now it is drying. The yarn is Popcorn by Gathering Yarn. It is a 93% merino, 7% nylon blend chunky yarn – 100m per 100grs, highly textured and very soft. My dyeing tools are pretty rudimentary, a heavy steel pan, not to big – I generally don’t try to dye more than 2 or 3 skeins at a time, stainless steel tongs and bowl for presoaking the yarn and basic white vinegar to help set the colours. The dyes are Jacquard in bright yellow, lilac and turquoise.

    I love to watch the yarn change as the dyes are absorbed into the yarn. My stove has the perfect center element, long and narrow, it works perfectly as a low heat source for the dyepan.

    Just a little yellow dry dye for effect.
    Apparently a little goes a loooong way!
    What have I done!?
    Ok! This is more like it.
    This is looking pretty good!

    As you can see there are a lot of changes as the dyeing progresses! I am quite pleased with the final effect. It is easy to see that I am not a professional dyer, but I still get results that I can work with. These two skeins are a little different, but if I alternate the rows – which I will most definitely do – I should get a good result.

    The first picture is the yarn when wet. The second is the yarn when almost dry. You can see how different the skeins are.

    The Project

    I haven’t knit a moebius in a while. You know that a moebius one of those never ending circles that mathematicians and scientists just love. It is a mathematical concept discovered in the late 1800’s by two scientists working independently of each other.  Like the wheel, like knitting, it was it’s time to be discovered.

    Beside the text, is a Möbius strip made with a piece of paper and tape. If an ant were to crawl along the length of this strip, it would return to its starting point having traversed the entire length of the strip (on both sides of the original paper) without ever crossing an edge.  Wikipedia

    Knitters love them too, especially Cat Bordi, her moebius cast-on has really added something to the knitting lexicon.

    The first project I knit using the moebius cast-on was the free pattern Grace Cowl. I was hooked. Since then I have designed a few moebius patterns. And I think it is time to create another pattern, something simple, something for teaching the technique to knitters who love to play and learn a new cast-on.

    The moebius cast-on is a center line cast-on. This means that once the cast-on and first round are knit you will then be knitting in two directions.

    The Moebius cast-on resembles a modified provisional cast-on; but is not provisional and becomes the two center rounds of your garment.  Like some cast-on’s, provisional or otherwise this cast-on is “un-tensioned” and requires patience for the first half of the round of knitting – the second half of the round is easy.  From the Moebius cast-on, like any other cast-on, a knitter can knit almost any kind of stitch and create a unique garment.

    Be prepared – each half of the curve is the mirror image of the other half.  For example; if every round after the cast-on is knit, one half of the moebius will appear as stockinet and the other half as reverse stockinet.  Because of this a reversible stitch is recommended for those knitters who want both sides to be visually the same.

    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tri-leaf-moebius
    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/victorian-grace-moebius
    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/river-moebius
    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cloisonne-moebius
    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/waves—welted-moebius
    https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/parquet-entrelace-moebius

    Popcorn is a lovely textured yarn and with being hand-dyed will knit up in a wonderful moebius without to much effort beyond knit and purl textures. I am thinking of a simple seed stitch alternating with some garter st bands. Time to try the cast-on with the dyed yarns.

    The skeins definitely will need to be alternated! But aren’t they pretty! It was hard to find some natural light to really show you the colours, today is definitely grey. The dining room window sill did the job!

    I couldn’t find my Addi circ needle, 8mm, US 11, 120cm or 47 in long, my preferred needles for this technique, so I am using an old Crystal Palace bamboo circ, 55 inches long. The cord is a little stiffer than I like to use. But everything else is buried behind other stuff until the Christmas Decorations are taken down and everything put away!

    The Knitting

    Supplies – 8.0mm circ needle, 55 inches long, 200m chunky yarn, BORM and halfway point marker

    The most difficult part of moebius knitting is the cast-on and the first half round of the knitting. The cast-on is a unique one, almost provisional, one that creates an upper and lower row of stitches.

    This cast-on has no tension and the stitches love to leapfrog over each other for the first half of the round. After the first half is knit the stitches will behave themselves.

    Picture – cast-on and first half round complete

    Once the first half is knit everything knits as normal except for the fact that you are knitting away from the center. As you get further and further from the center you can see the cords separating and the knitting getting wider. It is so magical!

    Time to give my hands a break and do something different! But not for long! This is building up fast and I really want to see it complete!

    Happy Knitting

    Lynette

  • Next UP!

    Next UP!

    My Sunrise sweater is finished! I am quite pleased with it! And it fits perfectly!

    In tidying up my workroom I have stumbled across a couple of other sweaters for myself. The Pink Juniper Moon Beatrix is the next one on my list to finish. I love the softness of this yarn. It is sooo light and sooo soft! And it knits up so quickly! The other sweater did not pass muster and was quickly ripped back and rolled into a ball, waiting for a different style to work into. 🙂

    You may note a bit of a trend here… most of the sweaters I knit for myself are tunic length. I hate to be cold and a longer sweater keeps my back nice and toasty! I do have a plan for another piece, most likely a vest, longer, with split sides, a knit belt, and colourwork, colourwork in the Muhu style. Which is bright! Oh so bright! Just my style.

    • Roosimine and Knitting an Estonian Garden
    • Embroidery on Knitting
    • So much inspiration!
    • Eco Scandinavian Chunky
    • Oh these socks just make my toes curl! are they not amazing?

    I will have to revisit my pattern Knitting and Estonian Garden, for some Roosimine patterns to add to the vest. Roosimine is an embroidery style technique from Estonia that is worked on your knits as you knit. It is quite common for knits to have surface embroidery to add details.

    I will not be using a fine yarn. I am going to work with a new Chunky, Eco Scandinavian Chunky. It is new this year from Estelle and it is a lopi style yarn. You can see the colours I picked. I may need to add a green or blue. Still thinking on it! Swatching should commence this week.

    And Finally! I have written up a little pattern that hightlights my current mindless, evening or travelling project. i hope that you will like it.

    Crystalline Lattice

    This Cowl, Wimple or Scarf pattern is the perfect project to mop-up of all of the left-over bits of laceweight silk mohair that we all seem to be collecting.  This is a tube scarf, that can be something different at different lengths.  Right now it is only Cowl size, but as it becomes longer it will grown to be a Wimple (a tube that covers both neck and head) and then a scarf.  I am aiming for a scarf myself.  So, until it is a scarf the pattern will be free.

    The very basic atomic shape of a natural crystal as it grows is a lattice.  So here we are growing our own crystal.  Mine shows as shades of purple.  What will your Crystalline Lattice show?

    It is a super simple pattern, 7 rows, slipped stitches, stockinette and little garter stitch.  The slipped stitches are twisted as we slip them, it gives them a very linear, ropey appearance.

    As you work through the repeating pattern you can change up the colours of the mohair/silks.  I am working with 4 close shades, and rotating them from lightest to darkest.  But I am thinking of making a second scarf, and picking up all sorts of bits to make a really wild colourway with no stripe the same and/or no pattern to the colour stripe sequence.  Or maybe I should get some earthy tones and make something a little more organic.  This pattern could go so many places.

    Crystal LatticeDownload

    So Happy Knitting!

    Lynette

  • A Knitterly Start to the Year – part 1

    A Knitterly Start to the Year – part 1

    It has been a stressful few months these last few weeks and I have been knitting up a storm – or at least starting up a multitude of projects and even finishing a few.

    I started the Three Skein Project last year and finished it up just last week. What to do with left over yarn when you want to knit just one three colour hat! 

    What could We make with just 3 skeins of yarn?
    As a designer and yarn shop employee I am always taking home yarn, a real hardship, right?!
    Well, sometimes it does leave me with a problem, what to do with the excess yarn. Because, you know, I couldn’t just make a plain hat in just one colour so you could handle the yarn, see how it knits and how good it looks. Oh no, I had to make a hat with striped ribbing and a tri-coloured pompom.
    So, what to do with the leftovers – I usually label the yarn and pop it in a bin, but I really liked the yarn. So, the Three Skein project was born. And is the Sports Edition because of all of the stipes. I think that it makes the knits look sporty!

    The yarn is Haynes Creek Heather Aran by Gathering Yarn, an Aran weight 100% non-superwash wool. You could use any worsted to aran weight yarn in the pattern. These skeins added up to 600 yds in total.
    I ended up with 6 inches leftover of the marled yarn, and then 10 grs each of the red and white yarns leftover, approx. 20 yds each.
    There are 5 projects;

    1. The Classic toque – a little slouchy, starting with a striped rib and topped with a great pompom.
    2. The Court beanie – just covers the ears and shaped with classic cables and twisted sts, and I love the striped rib.
    3. The Round mittens – again with the stripped ribbing and simple shaping with an afterthought thumb.
    4. The Slalom cowl – look at those zig-zags and again with the stripes. An easy repetitive lace pattern in the round.
    5. The Drive-in mitts – short, striped, mitts that cover the palm and back of the hand but leave the fingers and thumb free for driving, painting, typing, anything where touch is really useful.

    What’s with the Stripes?! Stripes are a great way to monitor your yarn usage. It allows us to gauge what we have left and judge what we can use it for, and just how far we can push our results.

    I am quite pleased with mine.

    The first two patterns are now up on Ravelry. The rest will follow over the next few weeks.

    Happy Knitting

    Lynette

  • New and Noteworthy

    New and Noteworthy

    I have been busy!

    I am currently working on a few patterns for Gathering Yarns –

    • Cats in the Cradle – baby blanket or shawl with coordinating beanies.
    • Funky Brimmed Hat with Bad-dana Cowl – Hat modelled by Glorious Gertrude
    • Caahh…shmere with beads swatch – lusious lace tank in the future.
    • Cashmere beaded Fingerless Mitts – The Bee’s Knees!
    • Cable Cool Balaklava and Mitts
    • Cable Cool vest.

    For fun times in the future – beautiful handmade glass buttons.

    Ada made the beautiful buttons – Ada Babys Beads on Facebook – and I made her this hat with her favourite hearts! I finished the hat with one of her buttons.

    Well, I got the first box from the Beyond Merino Club (hosted by The Small Bird Workshop and Sweet Paprika. It contained 2 hanks of gorgeous, soft Corriedale sheeps wool from the Falkland Islands, one a natural grey and the other a beautiful deep Lagoon blue. Sweet Paprika did the dyeing. I made a half hap shawl. I finished it with I-cord edging and a couple of big, fat tassels. It will be part of the Happiness Hap pattern – coming soon!

    We are planning the next session of classes for Mad About Ewe Fine Yarns. I am planning to teach Mosaic Knitting. The first sample is done – a funky little Cloche – finished with a little tassel. I do love tassels. It is knit with Fleece Artist BFL DK and some Drops Kid-Silk.

    For myself – I am working on a sweater. I just started it last night. And like most sweaters for myself it will most likely get stalled along the way! You never know! I might surprise myself! LOL!

    It is pretty. Some soft mohair from Fleece Artist and a just a few little beads for show!

    Be well and knit Happy!

    I am trying to stay mellow and keep with the flow that comes with knitting. I hope that works for you too!

    Lynette

  • Photo Shoot

    Photo Shoot

    Yesterday Elise and I got together for a quick little photo shoot at Woodstream Park. We had a lot of fun. It was a beautiful morning and the trees and surrounding foliage was so full of colour. Gorgeous backdrop for the knitting!

    This is a pattern that I am working on for Cindy and Roy of Gathering Yarn. The yarn is a superwash merino aran called Bingo – a lovely yarn to work with.

    The rest of the items are a few hats and accessories that will be showing up in the next few weeks!

    Be well and knit happy!

    Lynette

  • BOLDLY Star Tweed

    BOLDLY Star Tweed

    I love working in my LYS!

    When new yarns come in my brain sets off all sorts of ideas of what to do and when to do it and what should come first! I pull out my stitch libraries and pore over the options trying to find the perfect stitch to show off the new yarn that has captured my imagination.

    Star tweed is a stitch pattern from Barbara Walker’s first stitch library, and it is an easy, repeating, 2 colour slip stitch pattern. Knit in a very bulky wool the tweed is a bold statement that can show off any two colours beautifully! Can you see it in two shades of grey? Or maybe a bold black and white?

    • Boldly Star Tweed
    • Why Not a Headband
    • Warm Cowl
    • Big Bold Mittens
    • Package Deal

    I am featuring this stitch in my new pattern Boldly Star Tweed. Star Tweed is a basic Winter Set, Hat, Mittens and Cowl. The Cowl is small which also makes it a great headband. The complete set can be made from 2 skeins of Estelle’s new yarn – Eco Scandinavian Bulky. Making it quick to knit and economical. I used a range of needle sizes – 6.5mm and 8.0mm for the mittens and 8.0mm and 10mm for the hat and cowl. The Eco Scandinavian Bulky worked up fabulously on any of the needle sizes I tried.

    Eco Scandinavian Bulky is a thick and squishy, super bulky yarn made from 100% organic Scandinavian Wool and is GOTS certified. Its single ply construction has great stitch definition, feels soft next to the skin, and let’s you knit or crochet beautiful projects super quickly!

    Hand wash cool, lay flat to dry.

    The Eco Scandinavian Bulky lives up to its’s name. It is soft, bulky, with a slightly uneven texture that works up quickly. The yardage is very generous – it seems to go on forever! I just kept on knitting and there is still some left over!

    Boldly Star Tweed will be available on Ravelry in a couple of weeks.

    How to work the star tweed stitch.

    Star tweed is a slip stitch and wrap style pattern. it is worked over 4 sts. Stitches are made and moved (dropped over) on every other row. The rows in-between the working rows are knit plain. Note – the first 2 sts of every working row will be slipped forward or back so that the pattern is offset. See pattern for full details.

    slip the first st, find the yarn that runs between the slipped st and the next st on the left-hand needle
    make a new st by knitting into the space below the running yarn.
    pull the yarn through to form a st., slip the next st.
    knit the next st and then lift the first slipped stitch over the next 3 sts.
    drop the lifted stitch onto the knitting.
    knit the 4th st, repeat from

    What do you think? Ready to give it a try? I will post again when the pattern goes live with a code to allow you to purchase the pattern at reduced price!

    In the meantime – Happy Knitting!

    Lynette

  • There’s a Little Spring in My Step

    There’s a Little Spring in My Step

    It is official – Spring is happening here. The Indian Plum bushes are starting to green out and the birds are singing a bright and happy song. This is the time of renewal and rebirth; of flowers and leaves emerging from the dark earth; of ideas bursting forth from our heads and fingers in much the same way!

    My brain is buzzing with idea’s tried and new ones waiting! I have yarn to knit and patterns to write – but the knitting is calling out more loudly. Old projects are begging to be finished and the new projects are waiting impatiently for their turn. While I contemplate how to bring order to my ideas I watch the world outside my windows change with the the advent of Spring.

    Squash Blossom Dreams in Buffalo Wool Co. Sexy, hand-dyed by Lorna’s Laces is on the short list to be finished this year.

    The Robin’s next door are busy building their nest in the evergreen ivy on the tree out side the window and I love watching them flit back and forth as they bring bits of string, grass and tiny twigs that all disappear into the green leaves of the Ivy. These Robins have been coming back for many years – I imagine that they are the same birds – and build their nest in the same spot every year.

    We walked around Buttertubs Marsh this morning. It was humming with life, birds, robins, starlings, chickadees, Canada geese, mallard and white headed ducks mostly, but I watched a fat brown squirrel as he leisurely crossed the path in front of us. He did a good job feeding himself over the winter! The people were out too! “Good morning’s” and “Hi’s” making the air happy, and the smiles on most faces, those smiles, making the heart happy!

    I have just about finished work on a big project and I am starting to look forward to and plan the next project. I can’t say much about the big project – except that it involves a big yarn company, pretty yarns and quite a few patterns!

    Butterflies and Bees Hat under construction.
    Butterflies and Bees Cowl

    The next yarn project will involve finishing up a couple of shawls. One I haven’t looked at for over 2 years and the other I started last year! In between I will be working on patterns for the hats I started last fall! Oh Yeah, and the Japanese Lace cowl and hat that I sort of snuck in there! No rest for the wicked! And I do so love doing what I do!

    I have been receiving a great deal of support for my creative journey lately – and from some new and unexpected sources! Life is good!

    I hope that you are all well and moving forward in your individual creative journeys.

    Happy Creating

    Lynette

  • Tri Leaf Moebius

    Tri Leaf Moebius

    Tri Leaf Moebius is the twelfth pattern in the Just Playing Around Ebook.

    The yarn is Schoppel-Wolle Cashmere Zauber, a lovely soft blend of merino and cashmere. The colour gradation is long and slow so that the lace pattern is not impacted by the colour changes, only enhanced.

    This pattern would look great in a solid. A soft alpaca or cashmere from your stash perhaps.

    A Moebius is a very entertaining knit. The cast-on and first round can be a little fiddly but the result is so worth it. The moebius shaping paired with a soft yarn creates an interestingly graceful cowl.

    The garden is growning and the flowers are blooming. The Poppy is done, as is the Clematis, But the Dianthus is blooming for the first time ever. I moved it from the front yard, where the deer ate every bud just before blooming, to the back yard where this year it is putting on a stellar show.

    • The guilty party – isn’t he handsome though! He lives in the lot next door a great deal on the time.

    Be well and knit Happy!

    Lynette

  • Have you ever…..

    Have you ever…..

    ….knit a moebius?

    What is a Moebius?

    Moebius Strip – from Wikipedia

    A Moebius is a mathematical concept discovered in the late 1800’s by two scientists working independently of each other.  Like the wheel, like knitting, it was it’s time to be discovered.

    Above is  Möbius strip made with a piece of paper and tape. If an ant were to crawl along the length of this strip, it would return to its starting point having traversed the entire length of the strip (on both sides of the original paper) without ever crossing an edge.  Wikipedia

    One type of Moebius – the scarf –  in knitting is often called an Infinity Scarf.  It can be created a couple of different ways.  The most common and easiest method of creation is by knitting a basic scarf and giving it a half twist before sewing the two end together.  Just like the piece of paper above.

    If you give the scarf a full twist it will no longer be a Moebius and it will just be twisted.

    And why is Cat Bordhi’s Technique so interesting?

    Cat Bordhi must have an amazing mind, to come up with such a unique cast-on and create a totally new way of looking at the way we knit!  Elizabeth Zimmermann once said that there is nothing truly new in knitting – new things to us are usually “unvented”, and just recently re-discovered!  Cat Bordhi truly “invented” something new and added to the body of work that is Knitting.

    The Moebius cast-on resembles a modified provisional cast-on; but is not provisional and becomes the two center rounds of your garment.  Like some cast-on’s, provisional or otherwise this cast-on is “un-tensioned” and requires patience for the first half of the round of knitting – the second half of the round is easy.  From the Moebius cast-on, like any other cast-on, a knitter can knit almost any kind of stitch and create a unique garment.

    Be prepared – each half of the curve is the mirror image of the other half.  For example; if every round after the cast-on is knit, one half of the moebius will appear as stockinet and the other half as reverse stockinet.  Because of this a reversible stitch is recommended for those knitters who want both sides to be visually the same.

    • River Moebius
    • Waves – Welted Moebius
    • Parquet Entre “Lace” Moebius
    • Victorian Grace Moebius
    • Tri Leaf Moebius
    • Cloisonne Moebius

    Cat Bordhi’s Collar Pattern – free pattern from Cat Bordhi

    Pop- Art Moebius – a free pattern of mine for Moebius.

    A long needle – at least 40″ – I like a 47″ – is required for the cast-on as you will be working with the needles doubled, circled around each other.  Each half round takes one half of the length of the needle.  In reality the round you are working with is only 20″ to 30″ long.

    As you knit the Moebius you will see the cords holding the two halves start to separate as each round takes them further from the cast-on and moves them closer to the final edge for cast-off.

    The moebius cast-on creates a unique shape that can showcase any type of stitch or knitting technique.

    Cat Bordhi did not limit her cast-on to infinity scarves alone.  She went on to create some amazing felted bowls and cat beds and other vessels – all starting with the Moebius cast-on.

    Once the books were out of print.  Cat Bordhi shared the cast-on on You-tube and made sure that it would not be forgotten. Cat Bordhi passed away Sept 19th 2020. I did not know her personally, but I “knew” her through her work. It was a great loss for all.

    If you have never played with this cast-on it is one that is worth exploring as it offers interesting possibilities for the adventurous knitter.  Not hard to do, just trust the instructions and try it out!

    Happy Knitting

    Lynette

  • It’s Sunday

    It’s Sunday

    So it must be a good day to release a new pattern. Meet Pinecones Cowl. A fast and easy knit for you or for a gift. Infinitely versatile and can be used to try out a new technique – pooling.

    The pooling cowl is for me! My favourite colours all in one easy to wear piece. A rare photo of me (I never like pictures of me). wearing the pooling cowl.

    Elise and I got together this morning for a quick photo shoot! In the rain! But it was fun and went well. I love to photograph my knits in different lights and at different times of the day. Morning light, on grey days is my favourite, there just seems to be a freshness about it – the colours seem to come out better.

    The simpler version of the Plumier stole knit with Handmaiden Flyss.

    We were getting pictures of the Pinecones Cowl and of the Plumier Stole, a new pattern that will be ready in two or three weeks. There will be two versions. One version, a little simpler, was knit with Handmaiden Flyss and my favourite version, which is a little bit more challenging but I love the effect. Knit in two colours of BC Garn Bio Shetland. The lace patterns used are all Shetland in origin, my favourite style of lace if I had to pick a favourite! Really I haven’t met a lace pattern that hasn’t called to me in some way! LOL!)

    Plumier Stole – knit with BC Garn Bio Shetland – the colours are little brighter than reality.

    Today we are going to pick some rhubarb from the garden and I am going to make rhubarb strawberry pie – a favourite around here. How do you like your pie? Do you prefer it plain or serve it with whipping cream or ice-cream? We go both ways in our household.

    Rhubarb from the garden and purchased Strawberries. It should be the perfect temperature come dessert time.

    Well the pattern is up on Ravelry and the kettle is on for tea. The pie is out of the oven and I am ready to sit down and knit for a couple of moments before I contemplate making dinner.

    What’s for dinner at your house? Today I am cooking a roast. Sunday I always try to cook something that will produce enough leftovers for at least one meal – keeps life easier after work.

    Be well and Knit Happy!

    Lynette