One WIP, One FO, and yarn

You are looking at my first colorwork.

The Bosnian mitten from Blackberry Ridge seemed seductive and forgiving.  It is in the middle of its third attempt at forward progress.

The first mistake was not carrying the main color yarn to the inside.  That was two tiers of tinking.  The second mistake was a misknit, and required frank frogging.  I am taking a deep breath.  I am fine.  I'm having fun.  (Really.)  There are no scissors in view.

My Ravelry queue has been overtaken by colorwork.   It is time.  The kit was purchased and started as a reward for finishing the mittlets.

I started with the angora 80%/merino 20% yarn from Samson Angoras, purchased at Rhinebeck, 2007.  I used the number of stitches, and the thumb gusset from the accompanying free pattern.  Then I used my own patterning.  Six rows of K2P1 ribbing, then mistake rib for the hand, st st for the thumb gusset, ending the palm with six rows of K2P1 ribbing.

Although it is big for my hand, it will serve the stated use (warm winter hands around the house) admirably well.  I had thought that the broken rib would pull in more, but it doesn't.  I did the thumb gusset as directed in the pattern.  I am quickly not-a-fan of pulling the gusset stitches together and having to repair the resulting hole between the thumb and the palm.  The hole was big enough to require two or three mattress stitches, as whipstitching it just created holes in different places.  (Note to self:  pick up stitches AND your sorry knitter's derriere.)

Spinner's progress:  another bobbin of Coopworth is almost done.  I've lost count.  Six?  I also added another fiber to my lifelist last month. 

I purchased Arapawa roving, 1 ounce (Rhinebeck, 2007).  The roving was soft and downy.  It was one of the nastiest spins of my lifelist to date.  Neppy, clumpy, clotted, it was clearly impossible to make a smooth or remotely even yarn.  I submitted to what it wanted to be, then Navajo plyed the resulting yarn.  It may become something acceptable when incorporated into a knitted fabric, but I currently call it a flop.  Brown is the color of autumn,  and hard to photograph.  This is a time when the camera was truly more sympathetic to the model than the model deserved.  In order, roving, singles on the bobbin, unwashed skein.

Comments

[margene]

Colorwork is a challenge when worked in small projects. Be forgiving of your fabric...practice will make a difference. Arapawa may be a bitch, but she looks nice enough now.

[June]

Sorry about the yarn - btdt. It may perk up with washing... and worst case, you can always make felted stuff from it.

[Carole]

I'm doing my first colorwork mitten, too. Must be something in the air!

[Marcia Cooke]

As much as I covet some of these colorwork mittens (guard that Bird in Hand, Margene!) I've admitted that it is not one of my talents, nor do I find it terribly amusing. I'd much rather make patterns with texture, but you guys are starting to wear me down on this. Perhaps in January. Don't know what to tell you about that handspun...I've had some of those myself. Like the gift qiviut I spun last summer....I don't talk about it.

[--Deb]

Good for you. And you know, of course, that they'll be all that much warmer for the extra yarn AND the extra attention. Because everybody knows that wool gets warmer when it has loving attention to bask in....

[Anne]

Maybe they were escapees, or MAYBE someone "accidentally on purpose" let them loose. Particularly if they were struggling with the spinning.

Can't wait to see your mittens!

[Caroline M]

I like your Ravelry queue - but you knew that already. On the brown, well the good side is that you only had 1oz rather than 1lb and you've learned something from it (not to buy any more) so it wasn't a waste.

The mitt pattern looks lovely.

[Teyani]

my stranded knitting has consisted of the scarf I just finished for my daughter... It was fun and enlightening (sigh) I find I need a bit more practice before I tackle anything else.
The mitts are really cute. You might want to check out the solution to the gap dilemma in Sensational Knitted Socks (he technique for picking up gusset stitches is superb - nary a hole in sight.

[PumpkinMama]

All learning experiences right? The fiber/yarn is such a nice color, a shame it didn't meet expectations.

[claudia]

Mittens are an ideal first-colorwork project.

[Martha]

That mitten is gorgeous! I can't believe you've never done colorwork before.

[Beth S.]

I've never even heard of Arapawa! But since it gave you fits, maybe it's just as well I've never seen the stuff. I find it interesting that even the website describes them in less than flattering ways: "ungainly", "ragged", "hunched".

The thing about mittens (or socks) in colorwork is that you have so many needle joins close together. It can be surprisingly hard to strand neatly and evenly around them. I have yet to complete a pair because of this. But have you seen those amazing mittens that Julia linked to?... Sigh. They are worth mastering the technique for.

[Lucia]

Yay you!

Marcia, how do you feel about intarsia cables?

[elisa]

I'm right there with you on the colorwork thing. I've got the needle, pattern, and yarn for some Endpaper Mitts...now I just have to do it.

Yep. Just have to do it.

Chicken, that's me!

[Danielle]

Damn you -- you've just made my queue grow. Again. BTW, I just got back from lunchtime SnB where I told the story about your sock-measuring project, and our resultant conversation about relative humidity. Of course, since the listener was wearing handknit socks, one with a shortrow heel and one with a heel flap, she may not see the utility of such a project.

[Pat]

We are making the same mittens - remember that little pile of yarn for my "next pair of mittens" Did it look familiar? I'm making the exact same kit - working up the gusset right now! Aren't they pretty mittens? I hope you have gotten on a roll....

[Juno]

I have an ounce of that licking around - very neppy. A lesson about the problems of commercial processing for a very fine fiber.
Haven't tried it yet. I expect you'll be able to hear the cursing from Mass.

[Juno]

or possibly kicking.

[Sylvia]

You'll soon have the knack of colorwork. Really.

The neppy stuff looks perfect for cat toys. Ever knit a mouse?

[Diane]

"This is a time when the camera was truly more sympathetic to the model than the model deserved." This sentence struck my funnybone!
I loved working on my Blackberry Ridge mittens and I am still delighted at how soft they are.

[Kathy]

The mittlets look great. Although, typing mittlets reminds me of our former governor, which is not so great. :-) Colorway is in the air -- I'm wanting to hop in too, but not yet. Still some things to finish.

[Birdsong]

Bravo for persevering in colorwork! My desire to succeed at it got me to learn to knit continental-style and use one color in each hand, a la EZ. I love the fuzzy warm mitts, but what really made me drool was the chocolate fudge roving turning into handspun yarn... very beautiful.

[susan]

Wow, mittens are really in the air this month. I just finished 3 pairs(and a felted oven mitt).
Did you try wet finishing your handspun?

[The Spinning Guy (Kim)]

I'm curious about that Arapawa. Do you think it is the fiber or the prep that's the problem?

It seems a lot of these feral breeds revert to shedding, and that usually means weak points and breaks in the fleece even when they don't shed. Weak spots make it harder to process without neps.

Were you able to achieve a soft yarn or did the neps simply make it too unstable?