Shopping List for September Bits of Lace project

Posted on August 29, 2012 by jackiees

Our upcoming September project for Bits of Lace 2012 showcases a dainty saw-toothed lace edging that you can use to decorate a plain fabric-center doily. This Lace-edged Doily  will look amazing anywhere you want a mini-covering under something to protect furniture while displaying your lace knitting at the same time.

Lace-edged Doily
Lace-edged Doily made with linen hemstitched center and 35/2 bleached linen thread.

The pattern for this Lace-edged Doily will be available in the Free Membership area September 1, 2012 through September 30, 2012. Hope you will be knitting along with us.

I wanted to give you a heads-up now about the materials and supplies you will need so you can be ready to start the project as soon as possible after the pattern goes live. Actually, you’ll only need the first 3 bullet items to begin with, so don’t panic if you don’t have the remaining items right away.

  • 65 yards (60m) fine cotton or linen thread – I used size 35/2 linen for the doily in the above photo; near equivalents are size 30 or 40 crochet/tatting thread or size 12 pearl cotton
  • Size 2/0 US (1.75 mm) knitting needles
  • Small amount of waste thread for provisional cast on
  • 8″ single row hemstitched round cotton or linen fabric center (you can find these at places like Lacis and Handy Hands that sell supplies for tatting and fine crochet)
  • Small tapestry needle with an eye that is just large enough to accommodate your thread
  • Steel crochet hook size 6 or 7 US (approx 1.75 mm)

Please be sure to tell your knitting friends about this. I appreciate you spreading the word to bring the art and skill of knitting lace to as many people as possible!

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How you slip does matter

Posted on August 20, 2012 by jackiees

This month’s project for the lace-edged towel has a selvedge stitch along the straight edge that is inelastic, maximizes durability, and a nubby texture for easy attaching to the towel:

  • Inelastic: because the lace edging will be sewn to a woven fabric which is inelastic
  • Durability: because of rubbing associated with normal towel use
  • Texture: because the little nubs are a convenient place to hide the thread when the edging is sewn to the towel

It’s an easy knitting formula:

  1. For the selvedge stitch at the beginning of the row, slip that stitch knitwise with yarn in back
  2. On the return row, knit that last stitch of the row.

The selvedge stitch will be both twisted and have a slight bump from the garter stitch texture.

When you are working this month’s project for Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel, I hope this adds to your understanding of how you slip does matter.

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The Shape of Things to Come

Posted on August 19, 2012 by jackiees

Not all lace edgings produce a straight beginning (cast on) edge and ending (bound off) edge. How do you know which category a lace edging falls into?

My own preferences in design aesthetics when choosing lace edgings for towels is to use an edging that produces a straight cast on edge and a straight bound off edge. This gives  visual consistency with the straight side edges of the towel when sewn. An example is this month’s project for the Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel.

Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel

Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel

The following is an example of a lace edging with a cast on edge that naturally flares with an obvious curve after several row repeats have been knitted.

Curved lace edging

Curved lace edging

Originally I had started this piece with the thought of using it for a fine linen guest towel (I was knitting with size 35/2 bleached linen on 2mm needles). But after seeing its tendency to curve, I ruled it out for that particular towel edging. It’s still a beautiful edging that I would consider attached to an item with a similar curvature, though. I love the “organic” fluid quality of it. It just is not what I would myself consider for attaching to a rectangular towel. What do you think?

If you are perusing a stitch pattern dictionary, it may or may not show the cast on and bound off edges. If it does, you are one step closer to knowing whether that pattern stitch meets your needs or not. If it does not, definitely work a sample before committing to a larger project.

Fortunately, for narrow lace edgings such as we are doing for Bits of Lace 2012, your sample can usually be the start of your project. Just be ready to change your plans if the resulting shape does not suit the vision you had.

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SSP (Slip Slip Purl) Technique

Posted on August 14, 2012 by jackiees

In the August project for Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel, the Knitted Lace areas of the lace edging stitch pattern necessitate ssp decreases on the Wrong Side rows that will mirror the ssk decreases on Right Side rows.

The ssp decrease will result in a right-leaning decrease that when viewed from the other side of the fabric will look like a left-leaning ssk decrease. Here is a review of the steps:

ssp –
Step 1: slip 1 stitch as if to knit
Step 2: then slip another stitch as if to knit
Step 3: replace these 2 stitches on the left-hand needle in their turned position
Step 4: reach around the backside of these 2 stitches and insert right-hand needle from left to right (this might feel unnatural as you are contorting your hand position opposite from the normal), and purl these 2 stitches together

I know that seems like a lot of steps, but trust me that it becomes easier and faster with practice. I was not able to take photos before I began my travels this month, but I found these to use as reference if you’d also like to see some visuals.

For other examples of Right Side decreases and their corresponding Wrong Side counterparts, see the bit-size tutorial Wrong Side Decreases in Knitted Lace.

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Wrong Side Decreases in Knitted Lace

Posted on August 14, 2012 by jackiees

In last week’s Lace Knitting vs. Knitted Lace, we learned that Knitted Lace has patterning on every row, i.e. it is a knitted fabric where the yarn over holes are made on every row.

In both Lace Knitting and Knitted Lace, the yarn overs are often paired with some type of compensating decrease; e.g. k2tog and ssk are common single decreases made on Right Side rows.

Since Lace Knitting alternates rows containing patterning rows (yarn overs and compensating decreases) with rows of plain knitting (knits and/or purls), knowing how to make decreases on the Right Side is all that is needed.

But in Knitted Lace that is worked flat in rows back and forth, knowing how to make decreases on the alternate (Wrong Side) rows that are the counterparts of those used on Right Side rows is required, such as in this month’s Spiraling Diamonds pattern. Fortunately, most decreases used on Wrong Side rows are pretty straight forward and ones you probably already have used before:

Right Side Decrease Corresponding Wrong Side Decrease
k2tog p2tog
k3tog p3tog
ssk ssp

Of these, there is one Wrong Side decrease used in Spiraling Diamonds that you might not have encountered before. It is ssp (slip, slip, purl). The ssp decrease will result in a right-leaning decrease when viewed from the Right Side of the fabric and will look like an ssk that was done on the Right Side. Check the SSP Technique article here at KnitHeartStrings.com for a review of the steps.

On the other hand, Knitted Lace that is knitted in rounds  (i.e. circular knitting) has similar advantages to Lace Knitting because knowing how to make decreases on the Right Side is all that is needed. If you like the look of Knitted Lace but don’t yet want to tackle a large project where there is lace patterning on every row, I recommend choosing a project knitted circularly. Some popular HeartStrings pattern suggestions of this type are Flared Lace Smoke Ring, Silk Smoke Ring, and Sunset Wrap.

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Lace Knitting vs. Knitted Lace

Posted on August 7, 2012 by jackiees

Lace edgings often are reversible. Or at least pleasingly reversible, since they quite often are attached in ways that can be seen from both sides.

Pleasingly reversible lace edging attached to hem of towel

Pleasingly reversible lace edging attached to hem of towel

As a corollary, these lace edgings have patterning on both sides. i.e. There is no “rest row” of plain knit or purl that alternates with rows where yarn overs are made.

Margaret Stove says in her book _Creating Original Hand-knitted Lace_ on page 6:

“… lace knitting is defined as a knitted fabric where there is a row of plain knitting worked alternately with a row of holes made in various ways. Whereas knitted lace is a knitted fabric where the holes are made on every row.”

Knitted Lace, i.e. having patterning on every row, can require a bit more attention, patience, and deftness in forming stitches from the strands of thread. But fortunately, lace edgings have relatively few stitches in a row and thus they are a good way to practice this skill.

The spiraling diamonds in the lace edging we are doing for this month’s project is an example of Knitted Lace. It’s easy to know this by looking at the pattern instructions because there is yarn over patterning on every row.

But even if you do not have pattern instructions to look at, here is how you can identify Knitted Lace vs. Lace Knitting. After you have completed some of your lace edging for this month, stretch it out a bit as if your were blocking it. Do you see the single strands of thread that separate the holes of the lace spiraling diamonds ? This is how Knitted Lace looks. If this instead were Lace Knitting, there would be 2 twisted strands of thread that separate the holes of the spiraling diamonds.

Now look at the eyelets along the outer line of eyelets along the shaped edge. Do you see that there are 2 twisted strands between each set of eyelets along the shaped edge? That narrow portion along the shaped edge is technically Lace Knitting. But since the overall lace edging contains Knitted Lace, I would still classify this pattern as Knitted Lace.

 

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August project: Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel

Posted on August 1, 2012 by jackiees

Are you ready for this month’s Bits of Lace project? It is the Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel. We will be knitting a lace edging to turn an ordinary towel into something extraordinary. I’m excited about it and hope you will like it, too. Whether for yourself or a gift for someone else, your Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel will have a special place in the heart and home.

[wp_lightbox_prettyPhoto_image link=”https://www.knitheartstrings.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/b4f-4322-1024.jpg” description=”Spiraling Diamonds Lace-edged Towel”  source=”http://www.heartstringsfiberarts.com/images/b4f-towel-with-knitted-lace-edging.jpg” title=”Knitting Bits of Lace Series”]

Use this pattern as written to decorate a small hand towel, or feel free to make the lace edging for a smaller fingertip or a larger bath towel.

This August project pattern will be available free to KnitHeartStrings.com members through the end of August only. Download the pattern now and knit along while learning throughout the coming weeks with bonus bit-size tutorials, tips & techniques.

Knit along, learn along, and enjoy the making!

p.s. If you are a new member and have not yet confirmed your newsletter invitation, be sure to do that so you do not get disconnected/removed from the system and can no longer access this site for members-only content. More info at The Key to Keeping Your Free Membership Active.

Posted in Bits of Lace | 7 Comments