String Geekery

Moving to a different blog service

2011-07-28T17:45:00.001-04:00

I'm switching over to using Wordpress; you'll find both the archived posts from this blog and future posts at this address:

http://stringgeekery.wordpress.com/

New Pattern: Paper Snowflake

2011-07-18T10:15:00.002-04:00

I love cutting paper snowflakes, with twelve folds and six symmetrical points. This knitted snowflake looks very much like one of my paper ones.

Knit these from the center out in cotton, linen, or hemp and then starch to use as ornaments. Knit in any fiber and use as appliqués. Good for using up leftovers from other projects.

For experienced or confident knitters. None of the techniques used are particularly difficult on their own, but the combination of some of them is a little finicky.

Yarn:
8-10 yards of laceweight on size 0 needles; about 19 yards of worsted on size 8 needles.

Techniques used:

casting on for the center of a doily
knitted cast on
multiple yarn-overs in a row
knitting through the back loop
knit two together
bind off (knit two, pass one stitch over)

You could easily use Magic Loop or 2 circulars; I used double-points. The pattern is needle agnostic.

Secret Code Summary

2011-07-08T10:45:00.000-04:00

I decided I didn't care about decipherability, so I mirrored it on itself and then removed duplicate columns:

Used as straight-up colorwork, the chart produces

(There are more variants in the longer descriptions.)

Other methods of encryption

2011-07-07T17:22:00.004-04:00

(This is part of a series of posts on different ways of hiding meaning in your knitting.)

Table of Contents: Embedding meaning in Your Knitting | Converting Words to Numbers | Making a grid | Possible layouts | Converting grids into stitch patterns | Lace | Cables | Other Encodings | Summary of My Method | Further Resources

Now we have come to the end of this series; I have finished describing my method for encoding words and numbers into grids and knitting. I'm going to finish up by summarizing some other techniques, both by other people and myself.

I have located two simple ways of knitting a block of text into a cipher that other people have come up with.

One is to knit as if you were writing, using purl bumps, colorwork, or slipped stitches. Writing is done in rows; knitting goes back and forth or round and round in rows. Admittedly, the mechanisms are slightly different. However, you can convert letters into binary and then knit the binary code in rows or rounds, where 0 is knit and 1 is purl. Take the word peace. Converted to binary, that's 01110000 01100101 01100001 01100011 01100101. In knitting, that would be k1, p3, k5, p2, k2, p1, k1, p1, k1, p2, k4, p1. You could go on to write other words as well and end up with a random-looking collection of knits and purls, or you could knit just peace as ribbing with a 40 stitch repeat.

Another option would be to convert the words into Morse code and make dots and dashes by purling or using colorwork and leaving gaps in between for the spaces between letters. A dash is three times as long as a dot. Here is peace in Morse code: dot dash dash dot, dot, dot dash, dash dot dash dot, dot. So that would be k1, p1, k1, p3, k1, p3, k1, p1, k3, p1, k3, p1, k1, p3, k3, p3, k1, p1, k1, p3, k1, p1, k3, p1, k1.

In fact, since I wrote the first draft of this post, Kate Atherley has published a pattern on Knitty for mittens with a Morse Code stranded knitting pattern.

You could even chart out your words using Braille (thanks to Pat Ashforth for this interesting idea).

There is also a web page by Wayne Batten which speculates about a potential way that Madame Defarge could have encoded names in her knitting on the fly.

The Binary scarf (on Ravelry) by Christine Dumoulin uses colorwork to write binary numbers. Similarly, you could borrow the binary cables from the Binary Cable Hat by Firefairy.

Another straightforward method of turning numbers into knitting is to make stripes. Take the word knit. If you use the simplest decimal encoding, then k=11, n=14, i=9, and t=20. Knit 11 rows of one color, 14 of the next, 9 of another color, and 20 of another. Alternately, you could knit ribbing that was k11, p14, k9, and p20.

Two anecdotal methods of knitting ciphers from World War II that I haven't found definite confirmation of and that seem more complicated to use involve modifying the yarn, knitting with it, and then unravelling it when it reaches its destination. In one case, the yarn might have been painted (in a long string, not a skein) with the dots and dashes of Morse code. In the other case, knots might have been tied in the yarn with the space between the knots indicating different letters.

Now for some thoughts I haven't seen elsewhere (though that certainly doesn't mean these are new ideas).

A somewhat more subtle method is to make stripes in both directions on a baby blanket. Here's a short name for an example: Ed. This becomes 5 and 4. If you do a k5, p4 ribbing for 5 rows and then a p5, k4 ribbing for 4 rows, it makes a reversible check pattern.

Another way to make stripes is to pick cable patterns that have stitch repeats that match the numbers.

I hope you've enjoyed my tour of a variety of methods of embedding and encoding meaning--I'd love to see any projects using my techniques!

(If you'd rather comment on Ravelry, I have a thread for this post in my group.)

Cables

2011-07-07T15:38:00.009-04:00

Cables

For cables or twisted stitches, each square on the grid should be thought of as taking up multiple rows and stitches, so that it outlines a crossing and the minimum vertical space before the next crossing should happen. For cables, you'll want the cells from the grid to be at least four stitches across and four rows vertically—the cross from a marked cell will happen on just one of those rows. Twisted stitches require at least two cells horizontally and vertically.

Original grid followed by the subdivided grid

Chart Symbols & Abbreviations:

	k	knit
	p	Purl.
	RT	Cross the 2nd st in front of 1st st, knit the 2nd st, then knit the 1st.
	LT	Cross the 2nd st behind the 1st st, knit the 2nd st, then knit the 1st.
	RT with the back stitch purled.	Cross the second stitch in front of the first and knit it; purl the first stitch; take both stitches off needle.
	LT with the back stitch purled	Cross the second stitch behind the first and purl it; knit the first stitch; take both stitches off needle.

Chart

Once you've got your basic chart, you can play around with variations. The simplest variant I came up with is to put a purl column in between every pair of columns with a twist, like this:

The result is the left-hand swatch shown in this photo:

peace twist 1
Round 1: k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1
Round 2: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 3: k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 4: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 5: RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1
Round 6: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 7: k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1
Round 8: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 9: RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1
Round 10: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 11: RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1
Round 12: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 13: RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1
Round 14: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 15: k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 16: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 17: RT, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1
Round 18: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1
Round 19: k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1, RT, p1, k2, p1
Round 20: k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1, k2, p1

On the right is the beginning of more complicated playing around. I declared to myself that the coded crosses would mean anywhere that a knit stitch crossed over a knit stitch; otherwise I could place a knit stitch crossing a purl stitch anywhere I pleased, including on return rows.

Chart: peace twist 2
Round 1: k1, p1, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p1, k1
Round 2: k1, p1, k1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, k1, p1, k1
Round 3: k1, RT with back stitch purled, p1, RT, p1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, p1, RT, p1, LT with back stitch purled, k1
Round 4: k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2
Round 5: RT, p1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, p1, RT, p1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, p1, RT
Round 6: k1, LT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, RT with back stitch purled, k1
Round 7: k1, p1, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p1, k1
Round 8: k1, RT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, LT with back stitch purled, k1
Round 9: RT, p1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, p1, RT, p1, LT with back stitch purled, RT with back stitch purled, p1, RT
Round 10: k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2
Round 11: RT, p2, k2, p2, RT, p2, k2, p2, RT
Round 12: k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2
Round 13: RT, p2, k2, p2, RT, p2, k2, p2, RT
Round 14: k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2
Round 15: k2, p2, RT, p2, k2, p2, RT, p2, k2
Round 16: k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2
Round 17: RT, p1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, p1, RT, p1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, p1, RT
Round 18: k1, LT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, RT with back stitch purled, LT with back stitch purled, k1, p2, k1, RT with back stitch purled, k1
Round 19: k1, p1, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p2, LT, p1, k1
Round 20: k1, p1, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p2, k2, p1, k1

Next post in series: Other ways of making knitting codes

(If you'd rather comment on Ravelry, I have a thread for this post in my group.)

Lace

2011-06-04T15:44:00.006-04:00

All these stitch patterns are multiples of 12. The return rows are all purl stitches, except that I knit one and purled one into each double yarn over.

Chart Symbols & Abbreviations:

	k	knit
	yo	yarn over
	k2tog	Knit two together to make a right-leaning decrease.
	ssk	Slip one knitwise, slip the next knitwise, then knit two together through back loop. (Or otherwise make a left-leaning decrease.)
	RT	Cross the 2nd st in front of 1st st, knit the 2nd st, then knit the 1st.
	LT	Cross the 2nd st behind the 1st st, knit the 2nd st, then knit the 1st.
	RTssk	Slip each of the 1st two stitches knitwise, slip back to left needle. Cross the 3rd st in front and knit it; knit the 1st two stitches together through back loop.
	LTk2tog	Bring the needle behind the 1st stitch, knit the 2nd and 3rd stitches together. Knit the 1st stitch

Peace Lace: Swatch 1

In this first swatch, I started out by putting a decrease next to every yarn over in the chart, but then I moved them around as I swatched to make sinuous lines (also, I started six stitches over from the edge of the grid):

Chart I made before starting knitting:

Row 1: k1, yo, ssk, k6, k2tog, yo, k1
Row 3: k3, yo, k2tog, k2, ssk, yo, k3
Row 5: k4, k2tog, yo2, ssk, k4
Row 7: k3, ssk, yo, k2, yo, k2tog, k3
Row 9: k4, k2tog, yo2, ssk, k4
Row 11: yo, k2tog, k8, ssk, yo
Row 13: k4, k2tog, yo2, ssk, k4
Row 15: k2, yo, k2tog, k4, ssk, yo, k2
Row 17: k4, k2tog, yo2, ssk, k4
Row 19: k3, ssk, yo, k2, yo, k2tog, k3

Finalized version of that chart, with an eye to making everything flow:

Row 1: k1, yo, k1, k2tog, k4, ssk, k1, yo, k1
Row 3: k3, yo, k2tog, k2, ssk, yo, k3
Row 5: k4, ssk, yo2, k2tog, k4
Row 7: k3, ssk, yo, k2, yo, k2tog, k3
Row 9: k2, k2tog, k2, yo2, k2, ssk, k2
Row 11: yo, k1, k2tog, k6, ssk, k1, yo
Row 13: k3, ssk, k1, yo2, k1, k2tog, k3
Row 15: k2, yo, k1, k2tog, k2, ssk, k1, yo, k2
Row 17: k4, ssk, yo2, k2tog, k4
Row 19: k3, ssk, yo, k2, yo, k2tog, k3

Peace Lace: Swatch 2

In the second swatch, I made most of the decreases line up vertically in the chart, swerving only to go around the yarnovers in the same line:

Row 1: ssk, yo, k8, yo, k2tog
Row 3: k2tog, k2, yo, k4, yo, k2, ssk
Row 5: ssk, k4, yo2, k4, k2tog
Row 7: k2tog, k3, yo, k2, yo, k3, ssk
Row 9: ssk, k4, yo2, k4, k2tog
Row 11: yo, k2tog, k8, ssk, yo
Row 13: k2tog, k4, yo2, k4, ssk
Row 15: k2tog, k1, yo, k6, yo, k1, ssk
Row 17: ssk, k4, yo2, k4, k2tog
Row 19: k2tog, k3, yo, k2, yo, k3, ssk

Peace Lace: Swatch 3

In the third, I added in some twisted stitches for the fun of it:

Row 1: ssk, yo, k8, yo, k2tog
Row 3: k2tog, k2, yo, k4, yo, k2, ssk
Row 5: LT, k2, k2tog, yo2, ssk, k2, RT
Row 7: k1, RT, ssk, yo, k2, yo, k2tog, LT, k1
Row 9: k2, RT, k2tog, yo2, ssk, LT, k2
Row 11: yo, LTk2tog, k6, RTssk, yo
Row 13: k2tog, k4, yo2, k4, ssk
Row 15: k1, ssk, yo, k6, yo, k2tog, k1
Row 17: k2tog, k4, yo2, k4, ssk
Row 19: k2tog, k3, yo, k2, yo, k3, ssk

If you would rather comment on Ravelry, I've posted this to my group as well.

Next post in series: Cables

Converting grids into stitch patterns

2011-05-03T06:57:00.007-04:00

Stranded Knitting

It's a fairly dense pattern, with about a third of the squares marked. Since there's no really long stretches of one color, it's highly suitable for stranded knitting, so I tried it out.

It's actually reminiscent of a number of traditional patterns; I like it. (Note to cross stitchers--wouldn't that make a nice border?)

Purl Stitches

For this chart, I decided to alternate pattern rows with plain rows to help the purl bumps stand out better and to keep the vertical lines of purl from receding. It still forms a slight ribbing effect, but not as pronounced.

Chart & Abbreviation Key
	RS: k, WS: p	Knit on right side, purl on wrong side.
	RS: p, WS: k	Purl on right side, knit on wrong side.

Multiple of four stitches plus one.

Row 1: k1, p1, k1, p1
Row 2: p4
Row 3: k2, p1, k1
Row 4: p4
Row 5: p1, k3
Row 6: p4
Row 7: k1, p1, k1, p1
Row 8: p4
Row 9: p1, k3
Row 10: p4
Row 11: p1, k3
Row 12: p4
Row 13: p1, k3
Row 14: p4
Row 15: k2, p1, k1
Row 16: p4
Row 17: p1, k3
Row 18: p4
Row 19: k1, p1, k1, p1
Row 20: p4

Slipped with Yarn in Front

When you slip a stitch, you can either hold the yarn in back so that the stitch looks like a regular stitch stretched out (which it is) or with the yarn in front, so that it makes a horizontal line.

This example mostly makes use of the horizontal line effect and has pattern stitches on every row. There are two rows where the yarn is held on the wrong side because the same stitch is slipped for multiple rows and this makes the slipped stitch weave in and out. If the yarn was always held on the right side, the slipped stitch ended up being mostly hidden. Another alternative for the really elongated stitches would be to hold the yarn in back entirely for a completely different effect. Try it!

One thing I like to do if I'm going to be slipping the same stitch over more than two rows is to add extra wraps to the stitch to be slipped; this helps prevent distortion. I've included that in the chart and instructions below.

Chart & Abbreviation Key
	RS: k; WS: p	Knit on right side; purl on wrong side.
	RS: k1 elongated ; WS: p1 elongated	Knit or purl as usual, wrapping the yarn around the needle twice instead of once. (Extra wrap to be dropped on next row.)
	RS: sl wyif; WS: sl wyib	Slip with yarn in front on right side; slip with yarn in back on wrong side.
	RS: sl wyib; WS: sl wyif	Slip with yarn in back on right side; slip with yarn in front on wrong side.

Multiple of four stitches plus one.

Row 1: k1, slip wyif, k1, slip wyif
Row 2: p1, slip wyib, p2
Row 3: slip wyif, k3
Row 4: slip wyib, p1, slip wyib, k1 elongated
Row 5: slip wyif, k3
Row 6: p3, slip wyif
Row 7: slip wyif, k3
Row 8: p1, slip wyib, p2
Row 9: slip wyif, k3
Row 10: slip wyif, p1, slip wyif, p1

For many of these stitch patterns, it's worth turning work over and seeing if you like the back too. Here's the back of this one:

(This one makes me want to have kept the slipped stitches all on the back after all.)

And here how this pattern looks in variegated yarn, which is often nice with slipped stitches:

Slipped with Yarn in Back

In this last example, all stitches are slipped with yarn on the wrong side. Pattern rows alternate with plain rows, and there are stripes of color. Each stripe starts on a pattern row so as to have the slipped stitches show up a bit more.

Chart & Abbreviation Key
	RS: k; WS: p	Knit on right side; purl on wrong side.
	RS: sl wyib; WS: sl wyif	Slip with yarn in back on right side; slip with yarn in front on wrong side.

Multiple of four stitches plus one.

Row 1: k1, slip wyib, k1, slip wyib
Row 2: p4
Row 3: k2, slip wyib, k1
Row 4: p4
Row 5: slip wyib, k3
Row 6: p4
Row 7: k1, slip wyib, k1, slip wyib
Row 8: p4
Row 9: slip wyib, k3
Row 10: p4
Row 11: slip wyib, k3
Row 12: p4
Row 13: slip wyib, k3
Row 14: p4
Row 15: k2, slip wyib, k1
Row 16: p4
Row 17: slip wyib, k3
Row 18: p4
Row 19: k1, slip wyib, k1, slip wyib
Row 20: p4

If you would rather comment on Ravelry, I've cross-posted there.

Next up: Lace.

Asymmetry or Symmetry?

2011-04-23T19:40:00.011-04:00

Making a grid

2011-04-18T19:04:00.014-04:00

One concept per line

If you have multiple meanings you want to incorporate, you can sometimes make a pattern that puts one meaning per row of the grid. Here, for example, is a grid of the Dewey Decimal numbers for peace (303.66) and knitting (746.432). Peace is the first row; knitting the second. I counted from right to left for both rows, and decided to count ten for the zero.

If I wanted to, I could make the knitting line slightly shorter than the peace line; this can be accommodated with increases and decreases. If the difference in repeat length had been drastic, I would try repeating the shorter set of numbers again. As it is, I just filled in with a couple of blank spaces.

Plotting the numbers on an X,Y grid

If you treat the number of the base you're using as one axis of the grid you're filling, and the number of digits you're encoding as the other, there's some more variations possible. I'm going to show peace in both base 10 (the one we usually deal with in everyday math) and in base 6.

The letters in peace converted into base 10 are 1605010305; converted into base 6, they're 2405010305. There's ten digits regardless.

I have chosen to leave in the zeroes. In the base ten grid, I'm putting them in the tenth square; in the base six grid, in the sixth.

Here is the base ten grid. I've started in the bottom right corner again (though really it's arbitrary). For this grid, I'm counting which digit it is from right to left, and then plotting the value of the digit vertically. So the first stitch is in the first row, the second in the sixth, the third in the tenth, and so on.

Here is the base six grid. I've started in the bottom right corner again (though really it's arbitrary). Zero is marked in the sixth column. For this grid, I'm counting which digit it is from bottom to top, and then plotting the value of the digit horizontally. So the first stitch is in the second column, the second in the fourth, the third in the sixth, and so on.

Adding it all up

A method of laying out a grid which can result in denser stitch patterns involves a little basic arithmetic (addition and division).

Take the individual digits of the number you've come up with and add them together. Then see if you can divide it evenly; if not, we'll pretend it's the next number up. If the grid uses the exact number of squares, the last stitch marked will be in a corner; if you skip to the next number, the final corner will be empty.

For this section, I'm going to pretend I don't have any zeros. The digits from 1605010305 add up to 21, which is 3x7. The digits from 1705010305 add up to 22 (2x11); from 2005010305, 16 (4x4); from 2205010305, 18 (3x6); from 2405010305, 20 (2x10); from 8069656769, 62 (2x31. That would make a very long and skinny stitch pattern; we could pretend it's 63, which is 7x9). I'm not going to show grids for all of these; it would take too much space.

For the first grid, I worked my way back and forth as if knitting flat. For this one, I used the ASCII numbers. I started in the bottom right, counted 8, then counted 6, then 9 and so on. Each time I got to the end of a row, I turned around and continued the count on the next row. You will note that since my grid didn't have the exact number of squares that there's a blank square left over at the end.

In the second, I did all my counting from right to left. If I couldn't fit all the stitches on a row, I continued the count on the next.

Each of these grids has possibilities for being turned into a stitch pattern, and you can see them knit up in swatches.

If you would rather comment on Ravelry, I've cross-posted there.

Next blog installment:Ways of rearranging the grids to make more symmetrical patterns, if desired. The entry after that discusses making the grids into actual knitting stitches.

Further Resources

2011-04-08T18:22:00.023-04:00

Novels with secret codes in fiber arts

Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. (knitting; historical fiction)
Jones, Diana Wynne. The Spellcoats (spinning & weaving; children's fantasy; part of a series)
Wrede, Patricia and Caroline Stevermer. The Grand Tour or The Purloined Coronation Regalia. (knitting; YA alternate history/fantasy; part of a series)

Knitting codes

Batten, Wayne. "Madame Defarge's Knitting Cipher". Wayne Batten's Web Pages for Montgomery Bell Academy. 23 July 2009. [http://home.montgomerybell.edu/~battenw/Defarge%27s%20code.htm]. Accessed 7 Feb 2011.

Encryption & Steganography

Subject headings to look for at a library:
- Ciphers.
- Cryptography.
"How to Create Secret Codes & Ciphers". WikiHow.com 7 Mar 2011. [http://www.wikihow.com/Create-Secret-Codes-and-Ciphers]. Accessed 8 Apr 2011.
Hipschman, Ron. "The Secret Language". The Exploratorium. 1995. [http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/secret/secret.html]. Accessed 7 Apr 2011.

Pattern Repeat Design

Subject heading to look for at a library:
- Repetitive patterns (Decorative arts)
Proctor, Richard. Principles of pattern design.
"Symmetry and Pattern Design Resources". Artlandia. 2010. [http://www.artlandia.com/wonderland/#Textile-design] Accessed 23 Apr 2011.
Waterman, V. Ann. Design Your Own Repeat Patterns: A Quick and Easy Approach.

Converting words or letters to numbers

2011-04-08T18:15:00.020-04:00

The Problem of Zero

Once you've generated numbers to use in your stitch patterns, you'll be using those numbers to count stitches or squares on a grid. Counting to zero can be tricky. One option is to add one to every digit, so that 0 is 1, 5 is 6, and 9 is 10. Another option is to turn zero into ten. A third option is to ignore all zeros. Note that this will make your code one way: decryption will be nearly impossible, even for someone who knows the code.

If you would rather comment on Ravelry, I've cross-posted there.

Letter Conversion Table

	10	9	8	7	6	ASCII
A	01	01	01	01	01	65
B	02	02	02	02	02	66
C	03	03	03	03	03	67
D	04	04	04	04	04	68
E	05	05	05	05	05	69
F	06	06	06	06	10	70
G	07	07	07	10	11	71
H	08	08	10	11	12	72
I	09	10	11	12	13	73
J	10	11	12	13	14	74
K	11	12	13	14	15	75
L	12	13	14	15	20	76
M	13	14	15	16	21	77
N	14	15	16	20	22	78
O	15	16	17	21	23	79
P	16	17	20	22	24	80
Q	17	18	21	23	25	81
R	18	20	22	24	30	82
S	19	21	23	25	31	83
T	20	22	24	26	32	84
U	21	23	25	30	33	85
V	22	24	26	31	34	86
W	23	25	27	32	35	87
X	24	26	30	33	40	88
Y	25	27	31	34	41	89
Z	26	28	32	35	42	90

Forthcoming post: Placing numbers on a grid so they can be turned into stitch patterns.

Embedding meaning in your knitting: Index

2011-04-08T18:13:00.024-04:00

Table of Contents: Embedding Meaning in Your Knitting | Converting Words to Numbers | Making a grid | Asymmetry or Symmetry? | Converting grids into stitch patterns | Lace | Cables | Other Encodings | Summary of My Method | Further Resources

I've known about Madame Defarge and her knitting code from A Tale of Two Cities for a long time, and have read a number of novels which include the idea of encrypting things in fiber arts. This may be what subconsciously inspired me to encode meaning in my Secret Code of the Librarians shawl (still in progress) and then to write up this series of posts.

Sometimes we knit for a special occasion: a wedding, a birth, graduation from college. In those cases, the beauty of someone else's design can be wonderful, but it can also be fun to create something new for the occasion. Why not combine the birth dates of two people who are marrying in a special gift, or perhaps encode their names into it?

You might be knitting a gift for someone who is ill--why not knit your wishes for good health into the design? Or if, like me, you wish you were more patient, you could knit yourself a shawl with "patience" hidden in the stitches.

Choosing Words or Numbers

A first step in converting meaning to knitting is to find a way to express that meaning in numbers.

To reduce the number of steps involved, the easiest thing is to pick numbers that are meaningful: dates, phone numbers, and so on. Dates have the further advantage that they can be expressed in a variety of different ways. Take the third of May, 1990. 1990 could also be written as 90. Three could be either 3 or 03, five could be 5 or 05. The five could come first or the three could come first (depending on whether you use US date order or not). The different configurations of dates will change the way your stitch patterns can be arranged, providing better flexibility in their appearance.

(This code swatch was knit using the date I started college.)

You can also combine multiple dates in one stitch pattern: if making a stitch pattern for a wedding shawl, you could use the engagement date and the wedding date, or the birthdates of the people getting married.

Some of the methods I'll explain later lend themselves more to writing long sequences of words, but I particularly like choosing one or two words to convert to numbers and then to stitch patterns.

I have limited these posts to the craft of knitting, but I am certain that some of the techniques I mention could be translated into other crafts. I would love it if someone gave it a try.

If you would rather comment on Ravelry, I've cross-posted to my group there.

Next post: Converting words or letters to numbers

(This series of posts assumes you are familiar with reading knitting charts.)

Sycamore stitch

2011-03-13T14:38:00.001-04:00

I recently knit slippers for my son with a cable from my Mon Tricot stitch dictionary, Sycamore Stitch. I'm not going to write up the pattern, but I thought I could at least chart the stitch pattern for people; the written instructions are my own, not a direct copy from the original. Nobody has tested these for me; please let me know if you have problems!

Key:

Right Side: knit; Wrong Side: purl
RS: purl; WS: knit
RS: slip 1 with yarn in back; WS: slip 1 with yarn in front
Slip 1 as if to knit onto cable needle, then the next as if to knit. Bring cable needle to front. Purl 2. Yarn over. Slip the stitches from the cable needle and knit them together through back loop. (Left leaning decrease.)
Slip 2 onto cable needle and let fall to back. Knit 2 together, yarn over. Slip the stitches back from the cable needle; purl 2.
RS: purl through back loop; WS: knit through back loop (results in twisted stitch)

Written instructions for flat knitting:

1: purl 1, knit 2, purl 4, knit 2, purl 1
2: knit 1, purl 2, knit 4, purl 2, knit 1
3: p1, k2, p4, k2, p1
4: k1, p2, k4, p2, k1
5: p1, k2, p4, k2, p1
6: k1, slip 2 with yarn in front, k4, slip 2 with yarn in front, k1
7: p1, slip 1 as if to knit onto cable needle, then the next as if to knit. Bring cable needle to front. P2. Yarn over. Slip the stitches from the cable needle and knit them together through back loop. (Left leaning decrease.) Slip 2 onto cable needle and let fall to back. Knit 2 together, yarn over. Slip the stitches back from the cable needle; p3.
8: k1, p2, k1 through back loop, k2, k1 through back loop, p2, k1

The Secret Code of the Librarians

2011-01-18T10:41:00.000-05:00

Back in April 2010, one of the Ravelry groups I belong to started an -along. There are lots of knit-alongs or crochet-alongs or spin-alongs out there - a group of like-minded people work on a particular project or kind of project at the same time, and cheer each other on. In this case, the Friends of Abbys Yarns (started as a fan group for Abby Franquemont's work but continuing as a community as well as a fan group) started the Friends of Abby’s Yarns Spin and Knit Along for Lace, FOAYSAKALFL for short. The goal was to have spun yarn and knit it into a finished lace project by the end of 2010. Only, you know, the rules weren't really that hard and fast. I'm still knitting.

I had some batts that Abby had made just sitting around, and so I thought it would be apt to use those. I decided to use my two Backwoods batts that I picked up at Sock Summit 2009 (photo was taken in late afternoon, so the color is off):

I finished my spinning and plying during the Tour de Fleece 2010 and ended up with about 595 yards of laceweight:

So, what to knit? At first I thought of making a cowl, but that ended up not appealing. Then I hit upon a brainwave: why not encode something meaningful to me? A significant source of numbers for me is my job: I'm a reference librarian. So I figured out the right numbers, worked out a way of encoding them (I had to leave any zeros out, unfortunately), and then started swatching. Some things needed adjusting, but the original numbers are still where they belong, which has the extra benefit that I can tell even more easily when I've gone wrong with my knitting.

I was lucky in that the two numbers I used each had their digits fit nicely in a 27 stitch wide pattern, though I can see some other ways to play around. I will have a blog post after I reveal the secret about how I worked things out.

In the meantime, here is a photo of my work in progress as of yesterday. I blocked it gently with steam from my iron. This is one corner of what will be a crescent-shaped shawl or scarf (depending on how far my yarn goes):

Bunny Ears Back

2010-12-12T07:44:00.004-05:00

For the pattern I'm working on, I came up with an interesting decrease that turns out to have been invented more than once already (not really a surprise to me).

The name other people use for it is Bunny Ears Back (because it's a variant of another decrease called Bunny Ears). (There's even a Ravelry group!)

Anyway, I've worked up a handout (also available as a PDF) to go with the pattern. I'd like to share it with you and ask for help in finding confusing spots:

Bunny Ears Back

a centered single decrease

Say you're making mirrored decreases in an upside down V over an odd number of stitches. When you get to the top, you have three stitches left that need to become two. The easy thing to do is to make one decrease and knit the other stitch. However, this isn't symmetrical and can irritate those of us who like parallel construction. I was recently in this situation and came up with an alternative; I was sure I was not the first to think of this, and indeed, I found a group on Ravelry--the Bunny Ears Decrease Fans. (If you're not on Ravelry, a blog post by another inventor of this decrease.)

The quick description of this is that you first start by making a left-leaning decrease with the first two stitches, then pick up the second of the stitches again and make a right leaning decrease. Here are some diagrams:

Make a left-leaning decrease in whatever way you prefer. Result:
Pick up the second stitch with the left needle:
Knit the two stitches on the left needle together so they lean to the right. (Combination knitters might need to reseat the third stitch so the right leg is in front.)

Please let me know if you find this at all confusing!

Pinion, redux

2010-12-03T12:50:00.000-05:00

I posted this pattern last year, and will be donating any proceeds from December 2010 to help a friend's friend and his family make it through a personal disaster: he was caught in random violence and needs reconstructive surgery.

This lacy tam is worked from the center outwards. The design spirals outward and flows into a ribbed brim. It looks more complicated than it is--if you know how to knit in the round, purl, knit two together, knit three together, and make a yarn over, you can make this hat.

Both charts and written out instructions (in abbreviations) are provided, along with suggestions for modifying the brim size to fit.

Other materials required include a darning needle for working in ends, about a yard of smooth, thin yarn for making a lifeline, and a plate for blocking (about 10 inches or 25cm in diameter).

You shouldn't need a Ravelry account to .

If you have a Ravelry account, here's the pattern page for Pinion.

Thank you!

Fancy Tricot Stitch (No.2)

2010-06-26T14:45:00.000-04:00

A stitch from S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework, p. 129, rewritten in modern terms.

This is a netlike stitch which stretches vertically, but not particularly horizontally.

Original description:

This is a pretty stitch for handkerchiefs, shawls, etc, or as a stripe for a blanket. Cast on a foundation chain the length required. First row--raise all the loops as in Tricot, and work back very loosely. Second, or pattern row--keep the wool to the front of the work, take up the little stitch at the top of the long loop without drawing the wool through, put the hook from teh back of the work between the next two loops, draw the wool through to the back across the long loop, pass the stitch just formed into the one above the long loop without taking the wool on the hook again, take up the next small stitch above a long loop (the wools should be still in front), insert the hook from the back between the next two long loops, draw the wool to the back, and pass this stitch into the last raised, continue to the end, work back in the usual way very loosely, and repeat the second row.

Modern reinterpretation:

Foundation row: Work one row of Tunisian Simple Stitch (TSS) as usual on any number of stitches. Work back as usual, but loosely.

Stitch pattern:

*With yarn in front, insert hook into the chain loop directly above the second vertical bar. Do not pull a loop through yet.

Now insert the hook from back to front between the second and third vertical bars.

Pull a loop through both this space and the bump on the chain. The yarn remains in front.*

Repeat up to the very last stitch, which is worked as TSS. Work back as usual, very loosely.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Fancy Stitch 2

2010-06-24T13:35:00.003-04:00

A stitch from S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework, p. 122, rewritten in modern terms.

This stitch forms a lattice with the chains peeking through. It can have a lovely effect when worked with variegated yarn. It biases strongly to the right. (It ought to be okay in the round, though.)

Original instructions from the book:

A suitable stitch for couvrepieds when made in thick fleecy wool and with a large No. 8 bone hook, but which does not look well worked with fine cotton. Make a foundation chain of an even number of stitches, work a row of Tricot, and work back. Second row--Work the first stitch plain, and then put wool round the hook, bring it out at front, push the hook through the next two long loops, still keeping the wool before the work, put wool round hook, as shown in Fig. 221, and draw it through the two loops. Put wool again round hook, thus making a stitch for the one lost in the work, and continue to end of row; work last stitch plain. Draw the wool back through the edge stitch, and then through two stitches, as in Tricot. The second row is repeated throughout.

Interpretation:

Make a chain with an even number of stitches, and work a foundation row of TSS and back.

Bring the yarn to the front of the hook, and then over.

Bring the yarn over the top of the hook again; you should now have wrapped the yarn around the hook twice.

Insert the hook through the next two vertical loops.

Bring the yarn back to the front so it crosses in front of those two loops.

Gently pull a new loop back through the two loops.

You now have a total of two new loops on the hook. Repeat the two wraps and purling the two loops together to the end of the row; work the last stitch as usual for TSS. Work back as usual.

(For the knitters among you, this is structurally the same as *yo, p2tog*, except for the chaining back part, though the maneuvers to get there are different.)

Open Raised Tricot Stitch

2010-06-23T12:33:00.000-04:00

A stitch from S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework, pp. 130-131, rewritten in modern terms.

This is an open, netlike stitch with thick horizontal ridges.

Original description:

A handsome raised stitch used for crossovers, petticoats, and comforters. It should be worked in double Berlin or four thread fleecy wool. Make a foundation chain of the width required, and work a row of Tricot, and then back. Second row--work the first stitch plain, then bring the wool in front of the work and put the hook into the hollow between the first and second loop, allow this to catch hold of the wool at the back, the wool passing from the front to the back over the work, bring the hook back again to the front with the wool on it, put it into the hole between the second and third loops, and let it catch the wool, returning with it on the hook, where there will now be three loops for the one stitch, draw the last made loop through the other two (see fig.248), and retain it on the hook. For the next stitch, put the wool forward, and the hook into the same space as before, between the second and third loops, and repeat from * [transcriber's note: there was no *]. Work the last stitch as the first stitch, and work back in Tricot.

Modern interpretation:

Work a row of regular TSS (the most basic stitch in Tunisian crochet), and work back.

Bring the yarn forward, in front of the hook.

Insert the hook into the space between the first and second stitches, bring the yarn over to the back, and pull a loop through.

There are now two new loops on the hook.

Insert the hook between the next two stitches, and pull a third loop through.

Pull that loop through the previous two loops.

*Yarn forward, insert the hook into the last space you pulled a loop through, and pull another loop through. Insert the hook into the next unworked space, pull a loop through, and pull the same loop through the previous two loops.* Work the last stitch as you would for Tunisian Simple Stitch, making sure to not pull it tight, as the Open Raised Tricot stitch grows vertically.

Minor pleasures

2010-04-20T10:42:00.001-04:00

I was fixing some errors in the way I threaded my table loom (I skipped dents while sleying the reed), when I discovered to my delight that because my table loom only has two shafts, I can sley the reed and thread the heddles at the same time. (This means extra care, but does save me time.)

What's in the works

2010-04-12T20:19:00.001-04:00

I am theoretically rewriting my free pirate baby boot pattern.

I am also theoretically deep in the throes of designing and knitting a shawl. That's going pretty well, but it's being more finicky than I expected. I got about a quarter of the way, then frogged the whole thing. Then I charted a lot, and did some samples, and then started again with lots of life lines. Thank goodness for that, because I got more than halfway and had to frog another large chunk of it. Not only that, but I dropped down some stitches from there and worked them back up again (but at least I didn't have to frog another eight rows). I'm making good progress on it, but I'm feeling a little beaten up by the whole thing. I'm charting and taking notes as I go, which is a good thing. I can tell I would never remember what I did otherwise.

I am also spinning for the FOAYSAKALFL (Friends of Abby’s Yarns* Spin and Knit Along for Lace). The idea is to spin a bunch of yarn for knitting something lacey, all to be finished by the end of 2010. I haven't even finished spinning the yarn for the FOAYSAKALFL, but planning the design started to consume my brain today. I've even been sampling the stitch patterns for that and seeing if I can make them flow well. So far so good, and I've even been improvising some stitch patterns, which pleases me.

I like using stitch dictionaries, but there are some gaps in what I need for this pattern. Not going into great detail, but I need five different stitch patterns with a particular overall character, and with five different repeat numbers. I found one that was exactly what I needed, two more that just needed slight modifications, and have worked out the fourth. This gives me confidence that I can come up with the fifth on my own. This is all very satisfying.

And then, of course, there's all my other works in progress. I periodically need to sit down and unravel the things that just aren't going anywhere, so as to clear out the backlog and free my brain a bit. I have a suspicion that the time is nigh. (Interesting that this seems to happen in the spring or early summer.)

*a Ravelry Group.

Tricot Ecossais

2010-03-01T12:48:00.000-05:00

A stitch from S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework, pp. 128-129, rewritten in modern terms.

Abbreviations:

YO = Yarn Over
TSS = Tunisian Simple Stitch
st(s) = stitch, or stitches

Chain a multiple of 3 stitches, plus 1.

1: Sk 1 chain. *YO. Pick up one st in each of the next 3 chains. Pinch the YO in the hand not holding the hook and pull the last three sts on the hook through the YO. (This leaves the three sts on the hook.)* Return as usual.
2: Skip the first vertical bar. *YO. 3 TSS. Pull the last 3 sts on the hook through the YO.* Return as usual.
This is very similar to some maneuvers from knitting, like passing a slipped stitch over another one.

(I expect the name has very little to do with the stitch's national origin - the name means Scottish knitting in French.)

Josephine Tricot Stitch

2010-03-01T11:51:00.000-05:00

A stitch from S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework, p. 130, rewritten in modern terms.

This stitch has fewer similarities to knitting than the other Tunisian crochet stitches I've tried. It makes a nice mesh.

Special abbreviation:

JTS: Insert hook in a stitch, pull a loop through, and chain one.
Repeat in the same stitch. Pull a third loop through the same stitch,
and then pull a loop through the last three stitches on the hook.

Original version (but with modern terms):
Start by making a chain the length you want, plus three.

Row 1: JTS in the fourth chain from the hook, repeat in every chain to
the end. Return row as usual.
Row 2: Chain 2, then work a JTS in each chain space. Return row as usual.
Repeat row 2 as desired.

If you find that the start of the row is a little too tall, try doing
1 chain instead of 2.

I found that I could get a version that draped more softly if I added
some extra chains, like this:

Variation:

Start by making a chain with an even number of stitches, plus one.

Row 1: JTS in the third chain from the hook, repeat in every other
chain to the end. Return row: Chain 1. *Chain 1, pull a loop through
the first 2 stitches on the hook.* Chain 1.
Row 2: Chain 1, then work a JTS in each chain space. Return row: Chain
1. *Chain 1, pull a loop through the first 2 stitches on the hook.*
Chain 1.
Repeat row 2 as desired.

This stitch pattern lends itself well to being fringed. Omit the last
return row and knot two pieces of yarn through each stitch.

Dictionary of Needlework

2010-02-25T08:47:00.000-05:00

So I have a Dover reprint of S.F.A. Caulfeild's Dictionary of Needlework. (Dover gave it a new title: Encyclopedia of Victorian Needlework. It's a fine reference work for its time. This means it's full of terms for various bits of needlework that have different names now, and what we would probably now consider bogus bits of history. Probably large portions of it are accurate; I'm not well-read enough to know all of which bits are which.

If you can decipher older terminology (or are willing to give it a try), there's interesting designs in it for knitting, crochet (including Tunisian crochet), tatting, needle lace, bobbin lace, embroidery, and lots of other stuff. It's hard to figure out what the needle sizes are, and I find the weights of yarns indecipherable. (I haven't bothered to do the research yet; I imagine there's a historical reproduction group on Ravelry that would be able to help me out.) It's an English book, and so the crochet terms are closer to the modern English crochet terms (i.e. English double crochet stitch = US single crochet stitch).

If you live in the US, you can see a complete scan of the dictionary from the University of Michigan library:

(Yes, Caulfeild is spelled with an "ei", not an "ie".)

figuring the percentage of a circle that's been made

2010-02-19T13:18:00.000-05:00

Okay, say you're knitting a doily from the center outward and you know how many rounds the whole doily is. It turns out that that there's a fairly straightforward way to calculate when you're halfway done (or whatever). You can't just say "I've knit 30 rounds out of 60, I'm halfway done", because the number of stitches per round keeps growing.

Here's the easy math: take the number of rounds you've knit so far and square that number (multiply it by itself). Take the number of rounds you're going to knit and square that. Divide the former by the latter, and that's the percentage.

30 rounds out of 60 means

(30 x 30)/(60 x 60) = 900/3600 = 25% or a quarter done.

Longer explanation:

The area of a circle is π times (r squared), where r is the radius of the circle measured in whatever units you're using.

If you think about it, rounds can be used as a unit of measurement. After all, if you're knitting something and you know that your row gauge is 5 stitches per inch, then you can count rows to know how many inches you have.

When you count how many rounds you've knit, you're measuring the radius of a circle, because you're measuring from the center of the circle.

Say you've knit 20 rounds out of 60. The area of the circle you've already knit is 20 rounds squared times pi, or 400π square rounds. ("square rounds" makes me grin, and is a strange unit of measurement--however, it will go away when we calculate the percentage.)

The area of the circle you will be knitting is 60 rounds squared times pi, or 3600π square rounds.

To find out what percentage the smaller circle is of the larger, you divide the area of the smaller by the area of the larger, so:

(400π square rounds)/(3600π square rounds)

Yes, that's a fraction. Fractions being what they are, there's a bunch of stuff we can cancel out: pi divided by pi is 1; square rounds divided by square rounds is 1, leaving us with 400/3600, which is one ninth of the circle, or about 11%.

It turns out, by the way, that you'll be about halfway done knitting any circle (from the center outwards) when you've knit about 7/10 of the rounds (or to be precise, 1/√2 ). In the case of the 60 round doily, that's about 42 rounds.

Donations so far

2010-02-09T14:59:00.000-05:00

So far I have been able to donate $54 for relief efforts in Haiti. Thank you very much for making that possible!

Pinion hat pattern!

2010-02-03T11:38:00.001-05:00

I've just posted a new pattern on Ravelry, the Pinion tam:

I will donate all proceeds for Haiti Relief (after PayPal fees are deducted) from sales of this pattern through the last day of February. Money will be split evenly between Doctors Without Borders/MSF, Partners in Health, and the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund. Thank you very much for your help!

Bull City Yarn Bag

2010-01-25T19:39:00.000-05:00

I've put up my first pattern for sale on Ravelry:

The Bull City Yarn Bag!

It's meant to let someone carry a ball of yarn or some handspinning fiber hanging from the wrist - excellent for portable projects! It's about five inches tall and five inches deep.

Techniques you need to know include
- Knit, purl, slip, yarn-overs and decreases
- Provisional cast-on
- Knitting in the round
- Three-needle bind-off
- I-cord
- Kitchener stitch (a tiny amount)

I will be donating all proceeds for Haiti relief through the end of March. The pattern costs $3. Funds will be split evenly between Doctors Without Borders/MSF, Partners in Health, and the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund. Thank you very much for your help!

2010-01-25T07:22:00.000-05:00

I've added some free PDFs on the sidebar and will probably add some more over time. These are my write-ups of some of my favorite techniques, ones that I don't see in common use.

Lifted increases look similar to regular decreases. Both left and right lifted increases are possible, mirroring left-leaning and right-leaning decreases.

The disappearing loop cast-on is useful for starting any knitting you work from the center outward, like doilies, some shawls, and hats or mittens knit from the top down.

Links go to Google Docs; the PDFs look better in a different viewer.

Lemonade

2009-12-08T11:19:00.000-05:00

This was an exercise in making lemonade from lemons!

I had some grey Coopworth combed top, which I handpainted. Unfortunately, I was (and am) still pretty new to dyeing, and the fiber got somewhat felted.

So I pulled it apart into color chunks, and combed the different sections to produce a very little bit of combed top which was lovely to spin up into a small quantity of semi-worsted 3-ply using a spindle.

Because the fiber had been felted, there was a lot of combing waste. I needed something to practice wheel spinning with (because I had some fiber I wanted to spin on a wheel for the Tour de Fleece), so I drum carded the waste, knowing full well that I'd end up with lumpy-bumpy thick and thin yarn. Which I did, and then I plied it with some very thin bouclé that my friend had. I liked it, but it was bulkier than I usually like to use, and besides, it wasn't really quite my style.

So I decided that the two yarns put together would make a project, and bethought myself of using a backstrap loom for the purpose. Now, I've put together another backstrap, but haven't finished the project. Also, it's been over 20 years since I did any serious weaving.

I am therefore pretty damn pleased with the result! It's a fairly consistent width and the selvedges are not too blobby.

the English Cast On, illustrated

2009-11-09T17:49:00.001-05:00

I originally posted a different version of this on the Advanced Knitting community on Livejournal. I hope I have learned from my mistakes; I certainly appreciate the commenters over there for making me reformulate my thoughts on the subject!

----

Sometime in my teens, I learned this cast-on, which has remained my favorite. I might have learned it from my grandmother; I can't remember, and my grandmother's memory is unreliable at best at this point, so I'll never know for sure. I'm a little sad about this, but so be it.

I didn't know a name for it until recently, when I checked Nancy Bush's Folk Socks out of the library. It was the first place I had ever seen it described. Armed with a name, I searched on Google, and found only two sets of instructions for it, both text. Here's the links, just in case they help clarify the instructions I'm providing: Britt Scharringhausen, Lord Gazmuth.

But there's no illustrated instructions online that I can find, and I'd like to show other people how to do it, as I think this cast-on has a number of advantages:

It's quite stretchy. (I can usually use it for sock cuffs.)
Because it's knit onto the needle, you can cast on in pattern. I only show casting on with knit stitch here, but you can also knit and purl (handy when you're about to do ribbing), and I imagine you could do the first row of a lace pattern with it.
I think it's attractive.
At the end of casting on, you'll have completed your first row of knitting.

There are some potential disadvantages:

If you aren't comfortable with throwing the yarn around the needle with your right hand when knitting, this isn't for you. (So if you're exclusively a Continental-style knitter, this won't be comfortable.)
You need to remember that you've completed your first row of knitting after casting on. Note: for some stitch patterns, if knit in the round, you may want to purl your cast-on instead of knitting.
If you are using the tail as a marker for something, it might be at the opposite end from where you're used to.
As with the more usual long-tail cast on, you'll need to allow enough tail for the cast on (or else use a separate length of yarn, in which case you'll need to weave in extra ends).

This is a long tail cast on. It's not the usual method that's called "long tail" by default. There's an extra twist in each of the loops created by the tail. The result is identical to the Twisted German cast-on; it's a different method for arriving at the same result.

First, figure out how you're going to do the tail. I've seen suggestions for the long-tail cast on of leaving a tail that's four times the width of your first row of knitting. I've also seen the suggestion of 1" per stitch in thicker yarn (worsted) and 1/2" per stitch for things like lace weight. Alternately, you can leave about a yard of tail, cast on 20 stitches, mark the ends of the tail yarn used in the cast on, unravel it, and figure out how much yarn you used per stitch. Also leave some extra for weaving in once you're done knitting. Or you can use a separate length of yarn* from another ball of the same yarn, a contrast color, or the other end of a center-pull ball.

First, lay the yarn over your palm so that the tail end is trailing off the pinky side of your palm (it's usually much longer than I show here; I'm just trying to make it clear which end is which) and the ball end is lying over the base of your thumb.

Close your fingers over the yarn. (I usually leave my index finger pointing up, contrary to this picture, but it doesn't really matter.)

Loop the ball end of the yarn around the tip of your thumb so that the ball yarn is between your index finger and the tail yarn.

With your index finger, reach over the ball yarn and under the tail yarn.

Here's another, closer view.

Straighten your index finger.

Drop the yarn off your thumb and pull the loop tight around your index fingertip. You now have what is essentially a twisted backward loop on your index finger. I kind of think of my finger as a flexible knitting needle when I do this cast on.

I did a little fiddling with two yarns so that you can see the structure of the loop more clearly.

Pick up your knitting needle, put it knitwise through the loop on your finger, and knit the stitch off your finger, tugging gently on the tail yarn to pull the stitch snug. (Note that the first stitch is a slip knot, so if you'd rather do that as the beginning of your cast-on, you can. Also, you can insert the needle purlwise if you want to cast on a purl stitch.)

Now repeat the procedure. I generally keep the tail yarn held beneath the fingers of my left hand as I cast on. You need to be careful to put the correct yarn under those fingers if you put everything down to do something else.

Here's several stitches on the needle, after I stopped casting on.

I realized that the fuzzy yarn makes it hard to see the structure of the cast on, so here's a couple more views with different yarn:

The tail yarn part of the cast on is a series of backward loops twisted an extra time. They lean to one side (from bottom left to top right).

Here's a video:

*If you want to use a separate strand of yarn instead of a tail, make a slip knot in the end of it and put it on your needle. Don't count it as a stitch. Cast on the number of stitches you want. When you can, drop the slip knot instead of knitting it.

New geekery in progress

2009-09-17T15:13:00.001-04:00

Somehow I ended up starting a new group on Ravelry: Textile Texts, for discussions, reviews, and lists of books having to do with the technical aspects or history of textiles.

So far we've just started up by setting up topics for book lists, but we'll also be discussing a book a month (like a book club) and I hope people will post reviews of random books or journal articles as they find them.

If it gets off the ground, I think it's going to be pretty nifty. Not to mention geeky.

And it's led to me finding this nifty website: On-Line Digital Archive of Documents on Weaving and Related Topics ...just going there to get the link got me started browsing. What a resource it is! Most of the texts are not in copyright anymore; some of them have been posted by permission of the author or the publisher. Amazing stuff.

That's my boy.

2009-09-02T17:46:00.001-04:00

T just turned five. We'd done some minor weaving stuff together (and a bit of spinning and knitting) before, so I got him a pot holder loom made by Harrisville Designs (our local toy shop carried it). In one day, we have finished one potholder and done all the weaving on the second (we still need to finish the edges). There's two loops left over, so we clearly need to get more--in bulk. He doesn't want to weave by himself, but he clearly understands the over-under-over-under aspect and the process for finishing the edge.

Also, my Spin Off magazine arrived today, and he insisted on sitting on my lap while I browsed through to see what was in it. At one point he asked me to go back several pages so he could "look at the cute drum carder again".

Hee!

Persephone deconstruction

2009-09-01T06:23:00.000-04:00

I spent a while yesterday taking Persephone apart. T got to help take some of the screws out after some of the trickier bits got done. (That is, things weren't in imminent danger of falling on him.) All the small bits (screws, pulleys, still-functional cords) went into a bin, and everything else got stacked in the library.

After T went to bed, I started wiping the boards down with diluted Murphy's Oil Soap. I got about a third done. I rinsed them with a damp rag, and then dried with a soft cloth. We clamped the piece with the worst crack in it in hopes of keeping the crack from getting worse before I get a chance to glue it--after all, the worst damage to the loom was water damage.

I expect to finish washing the wood bits today. While the boards are drying I'm going to dig out our sandpaper (I'm looking for 100 and 150 grits, at S's recommendation) and see if I can find our sanding block. I am seriously wondering how much time the previous owner spent on the sanding the manual recommends. I don't mean to impugn her. Well, I do a little, I suppose. After all, Persephone did get left upside down on a dirt floor!

I have some plans for some detail work which I hope work out. It's nice to have S around as a resource: his grandfather was a professional carpenter, and S spent a lot of time hanging out in his workshop.

I'm glad that I've gotten moving on this project. The way I work, I need to get the refinishing done as soon as possible or else it won't happen for another five or ten years. And if I'm not going to do it, then someone else should get the loom. No sense having her go to waste.

I also spent a little time yesterday staring at some crochet edging that was passed down in my family to figure out how it was made. It's one of the nice kind that doesn't require a horribly long chain for a foundation. You start at one end and keep repeating the whole pattern until it's the length you want.

In the process, I might have come up with a crocheted scarf pattern based on the edging. Which, really! I need to jot a few notes and finish the patterns I'm supposed to be writing.

Persephone photos

2009-08-26T18:47:00.000-04:00

I borrowed a camera from a friend, and so here are some pictures of Persephone!

Persephone

2009-08-20T11:48:00.000-04:00

Edited slightly from a post I made on Ravelry on 8/17/2009:

So I was driving up the street this morning when I noticed a jumble of wood boards and stuff on someone's curb (where people leave stuff when they are willing to let people just take it away). I drove half a block further when the nature of some of it sunk in and I screeched to a halt.

Two minutes later I had a trunk full of two warping boards (one of which doubles as an inkle loom) and was inspecting a rather dilapidated old floor loom.

Five minutes later I was walking downhill holding T's hand while the guy who had put his mother's old loom out carried the loom down to my house.

I have to inspect it more closely and it clearly needs a lot of loving care - a good wipe down, oil, new belts, new cord to hold some of the bits on, and who knows what all. I hope it can be put back in working order and that I can find somewhere to put it in my house.

If I can't make it fit I bet I can find someone who'd love it...

eeeee!

More details:

It's a 22” four-harness, four-treadle floor loom from Harrisville Designs. I think it was stored upside down on a wood floor. I think many of the metal bits (the reed and some of the rods) are going to need replacing due to rust. Some of the heddles are rusty too. It needs new belts (or whatever they are) so the harnesses will go up and down. The manual and the parts catalog are going to be My Friends, and fortunately, they arrived in the mail yesterday.

It's going to be a slow process getting her back in order.

She's named Persephone.

Sock Summit!

2009-08-10T10:03:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm exhausted and all peopled out, but I had a great time.

First, let me say that I highly recommend the HI Hostel in Northwest Portland. It's inexpensive and pleasant with good service, and it's within walking distance of everything I needed, including free public transportation.

I got to Portland on Wednesday, checked in at the hostel, and then took the train over to the Convention Center, where I arrived shortly before they started registration. Everything was well organized - they had three lines (depending on last name), but when they saw how many people were there (and figured out that they had enough volunteers), they allowed people with any last name to form a fourth line in front of the Information desk. This speeded things up immensely.

Once I was duly registered, there wasn't anything else scheduled for the Sock Summit on Wednesday. I could have stuck around just to be part of the crowd, but I'm enough of an introvert that I knew that I needed to go spend some time alone so as not to wear myself out before the weekend even really started. So I headed back toward the hostel. I think that was the day I stopped at a food stand and got a sort of Greek-style grilled cheese sandwich (spinach, feta, tomato, and something else I don't recall). In any event, it was tasty.

I took note that Powell's City of Books was on what looked likely to be my daily route, made it back to the hostel, dropped off the registration materials, and then walked over to Trader Joe's for basic supplies. Then back to the hostel, where I puttered around online and read books and forced myself to stay up to 10 on the theory that even if I had insomnia, perhaps I could wake up at 4 am Portland time instead of 4 am Eastern Time.

And indeed, I was up at 4 am Portland time. Alas. At least I could make myself tea and access the internet and work out what time I needed to catch the light rail to get to my first class.

My first class was one of the short sessions. Chrissy Gardiner taught us her three favorite bind-offs for toe-up socks. I was familiar with a couple of them, as it happened, but hadn't ever tried the third. I'm not sure I'm likely to use it much, but I do like having more knowledge, so it's all good.

I went back to the hostel for lunch, and then made a stop in Powell's. In any case, my afternoon class was with Star Athena, and covered a combination of methods of sock designing, how to write sock patterns, and how the knitting pattern publication process works. I think this was the class I took that had the most information that was new to me. It was extremely encouraging to me, and I've got a fire lit under me to get my Inset sock pattern finished. Not that far to go, folks, and then I publish on Ravelry.

Following the design class, the Marketplace opened for people who were registered for classes. It was overwhelming and amazing. I had some missions in mind, and so I headed straight for Carolina Homespun, where I nabbed some Abby batts (mmmmm) and the class pack for the spindle spinning basics class. Then I went up and down the aisles, spending friends' money and a little of my own. I'm still not certain I made the best choices, but I think they were pretty good ones. And oh, there was so much beautiful stuff there.

Friday morning I got to the Convention Center before 7 so I could get a ticket for the World Record attempt. I am still bemused that I did this, but it seemed like it might be fun. And it was. A few hours later, the attempt started, and I had a good time chatting with the people around me while we knit. Then back to the hostel.

Saturday morning I walked down to the Rose Garden. I was really hoping for a visit to the Japanese Garden, but it wasn't open yet, and seemed to have an entrance fee to boot, so I skipped it. It was a lovely walk regardless. Then I gathered up my supplies for the spinning class and the books I'd bought and already read. I stopped in at Powell's, where I sold the books back to them and picked up another for the plane. (This was really quite convenient.)

Then off to Sock Summit again.

I wandered through the marketplace one more time, and then it was off to "Spindle Spinning Basics" with Abby Franquemont. I didn't actually learn all that many new techniques, but it was a wonderful class nonetheless. Abby & Denny are very funny! But best of all, I loved watching Abby start with some history, and then move from the techniques used to teach children in the Andes (this was new to me, and I hope to use it with my son) to teaching park & draft spinning. Somehow she made the transitions effortless. I wouldn't say that people found the actual spinning effortless; I mean that the shifts between techniques were natural.

After the class I was almost entirely wiped out. Back to the hostel, with a stop for dinner on the way. I got up the next morning, finally found out that there were other Sock Summit attendees there (we'd been on different schedules), then packed up, checked out, and headed off to the airport.

My flights were pretty much on time (which meant that I got home past midnight). I was exhausted, and seem to have managed to leave the camera on the plane. This means no pictures, alas.

It was an excellent trip, all in all.

Current spinning project

2009-06-25T06:54:00.001-04:00

I have some scrumptious tussah silk top that I started spinning shortly before I decided to sign up for the Tour de Fleece, so it is my current work in progress (as opposed to something that's been languishing in a dark corner).

The shaded picture of the braid shows the colors more truly (on my screen, anyway), and the sunlit one shows just why I called this "ooooh shiny" on my stash entry for it on Ravelry.

I'm almost a third of the way through spinning it on my beloved Bosworth spindle:

(the photo was taken before I did quite a bit more spinning yesterday afternoon.)

It's being a dream to spin up - I'm having an easy time drafting it (I'm doing something more on the worsted end of the things) and don't have a lot of waste. I bought the braid from the Sanguine Gryphon during a charity fundraiser she had going more than a year ago, and while I was scared of the silk at first, I'm having a lovely time of it.

I'm either going to not ply it, or I will ply it with a silk thread. It's laceweight, and I'm considering making either the Aeolian or Laminaria shawl from it, if I have enough. On the other hand, it's coming out a little paler than I had hoped, so it might end up being a color I'd be unlikely to wear.

I guess I'll have to wait and see the finished yarn!

Challenging myself to finish some old spinning projects

2009-06-24T05:27:00.000-04:00

I've joined the Tour de Fleece (the Ravelry one, that is).

The challenge involves spinning every day that the Tour de France is riding. (We spin while they do. This is not my bad pun.)

I've been a little lacklustre about spinning lately, but am already feeling more excited. I'm spinning a lot more on my current project already.

For the challenge, I've decided that I'll pull out three works in progress that I haven't touched in months and do my best to finish all three. Then I will have more yarn and more space for more fiber!

We're putting together a "team" from String Thing, which I think will be fun: we can egg each other on.

Here's some pictures of the fiber that I'll be finishing spinning for the Tour:

Some silk hankies I dyed last summer and started spinning last November. My hands were too dry to work with silk over the winter and then I never went back to them.

Some silk given to me by my Ravelry friend debolsillo blended with some Ashland Bay merino I bought from the Woolery. This one will be the challenge: I'm spinning it thick and even, and I'm better at thin and even.

Some handpainted Blue Faced Leicester top from Three Waters Farm, which is local to me. I don't think I'll be spinning the rest up the way I started, so this will kind of be a new project.

Redesigning

2009-06-17T09:05:00.000-04:00

It figures. I get my sock pattern all written up and partially edited, when I discover that there might be a better way to do the most difficult part. I think it would not only improve the appearance but be easier to knit.

I'm working up a quarter-scale version of the sock, and it's looking promising!

Fortunately, I can use the experience from writing up the first version to improve the write-up on the new one.

I still have hopes of getting this done by Sock Summit!

Translation from sock to pattern

2009-06-14T08:12:00.001-04:00

This last month has taught me that translating my designs into written patterns is hard work.

Fortunately, I have friends who are or will be acting as beta testers. One of them has gotten a good start on the whole thing, and has been doing a good job of knitting what I wrote, not what I meant to write. She's also told me when my instructions are flat-out confusing. Very helpful!

I'm also glad that I will be taking a class on designing and writing sock patterns at Sock Summit--I hope it will help me learn the language.

Part of my problem is that I learned sock basics eight years ago, and haven't used written patterns since. Furthermore, this particular sock has a very unusual construction, and so converting the abbreviated summary in my head (which partly uses a three-dimensional understanding of the structure, only not a visualization*, instead of verbal description) into something that someone else can follow is extra tricky.

I think I have a decent draft of the trickiest bit, but we'll see what she makes of it!

*This is very hard to describe. When I "visualize" things, I often don't "see" them in my mind. I have a kind of kinetic feel for spatial relationships instead.

Sock Design Progress

2009-05-10T14:00:00.000-04:00

Well, I finished one sock of this pair, and will be working on writing up the pattern in segments as I knit the second. I'm finding that the bottleneck with patterns is the actual writing. I've found some test knitters, and will be giving them instructions as each part is written; I hope this will make a difference in my actually finishing writing the pattern.

I also need to do the same with the Winter Solstice socks I posted about before.

Hard work!

Design setback

2009-05-05T07:01:00.000-04:00

I was just about to post that I was making really good progress on one of my sock designs and that I'd finished half a sock, when I realized that I had half again more stitches than I should on the instep. Then I realized why, sighed, and ripped back most of the way. Fortunately, I had used a lifeline right before the critical row, and so it wasn't hard to pick up the stitches again.

Onward!

Barn Raising for Doctors Without Borders

2009-04-17T18:05:00.000-04:00

A community project which has arisen from the planning for Sock Summit 2009 is the collection of Barn Raising Quilt squares to be sewn together and auctioned off. The fundraiser will benefit Doctors Without Borders, one of my favorite non-profits.

Since I inevitably have some leftover sock yarn, I'm going to knit some squares for the project. The pattern is temporarily available for free for charity knitting.

Stretched thin?

2009-04-13T20:14:00.000-04:00

I'm now working on four different pairs of socks, which might be a mistake, or might not. We shall see. I'm also spinning up some lovely, dark brown Romney locks. I'm planning on making four-strand, cabled sock yarn.

Twisty brain

2009-04-11T18:13:00.000-04:00

All of a sudden I found myself doubting how this sock that I'm knitting will come out. I stopped and thought about the oddities involved, did some math, and still felt dubious.

Then I thought, "What's the worst thing that could happen?" and decided to forge ahead with my original plans. If I have to frog some knitting and start over a bit, well, that's part of designing!

Deluge

2009-04-11T15:06:00.000-04:00

Each new design I knit seems to spark at least one new idea. I suppose this is a good sign, but it's hard to keep up! (I'm making sketches so I don't lose track of the brainstorms.)

Design progress

2009-04-11T13:47:00.000-04:00

I'm pleased to say that my designing enthusiasm is continuing - now if only I can actually get myself to write things up!

I'm about a third of the way through one full-size sock from one design and have knitted up most of a prototype of the second. (The prototype involves just knitting a small version of the portion of the sock that has the unusual construction.)

A while ago I also started to write up the pattern for some other finished socks, and I need to sit down and finish them. It's very easy to see what the bottleneck is!

These are the socks that I've started writing up; it's a more conventional pattern, which I call Winter Solstice:

Getting Going!

2009-04-05T19:21:00.000-04:00

There's two things I've been meaning to do:

Get started on using this blog.

Actually try knitting and writing up the patterns for some sock designs I have in my head.

With Sock Summit coming up, I'm feeling more inspired. I don't yet know if I will be able to afford to go; however, there's no reason not to work on the socks in any case.

Welcome!

2008-08-07T17:40:00.000-04:00

I call myself a string geek because I like doing a whole range of hand crafts, most of which involve string or yarn: knitting, spinning, sewing, nalbinding, crochet, embroidery, tatting, dyeing, and probably some I'm not even thinking of.

Hello!

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