Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Yarn Organization

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This weekend I thought I would get control of my stash, patterns, books and my knitting tools. I have been known to buy the same colorway of certain yarns again because I am drawn to yarn by color, not necessarily by type of yarn. I have a palm TX

to organize my life and use [tag]Documents to Go[/tag] frequently. I am a whiz with MS programs having used them since they were created. (Did I mention I started using computers when I was a baby? LOL)

Because my palm is never far from me, I thought it would be a wonderful idea to also use my palm to get control of my yarn purchasing.

My idea was to create a workbook in excel. In this workbook I would put all my yarns by type, list all my needles, books and patterns. I thought to also list my class schedule and favorite LYS here as well as in my address book.

Well, after digging through my stash, putting all the yarns into bins by weight and logging them into my palm, I came to a conclusion.

It’s more fun to buy the yarns than it is to organize them! Thankfully I don’t have duplicate patterns or books (that has happened before) but this is an endless task!

I think I will take a chocolate break now!

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Add a Little Lace to Your Knitting Patterns

If you’re new to lace knitting or just aren’t sure how to incorporate the technique into garments, check out these tops and sweaters that use lace as a decorative element.

The easiest lace out there is eyelets, and you can practice them plenty with this eyelet covered sweater from Knitcro Addict. It uses light/DK weight yarn and is worked in four pieces knit flat. It’s intended to be a little cropped and a little oversized, and includes sizes XS to XXL in the pattern.

If you’re in parts of the world where it’s getting colder as you read this, the Nora sweater from Bummbul might be a good choice. This is actually a great one for learning lace because it’s worked in super bulky yarn, which makes it easier to see what you’re doing and makes the lace super graphic. This one just comes in one size, with a 42 inch (106) cm bust, but that could fit a variety of people depending on how much ease you like.

Minimi Knit Design has a cute allover lace cardigan worked in one piece from the bottom up. It’s worked in lace weight mohair held double, which maybe isn’t the best for those new to lace (because it can be hard to rip out) but it sure is pretty. Sizes range to fit from 30 to 66 inches/76 to 168 cm bust measurements.

If you’d rather not have lace all over your sweater, you can knit the Lumi sweater from Originally Lovely, which has a chevron lace pattern on the yoke and is otherwise worked in reverse stockinette stitch. (It’s worked inside out so you don’t have to purl every stitch.) The pattern has 9 sizes from XS to 5XL and uses worsted weight yarn.

Or try the super romantic sookie blouse from Trust the mojo (available on Ravelry). This sweet top is started working flat from the bottom up and has a V-neck and I-cord edgings. The sleeves are worked separately in the round, and the pieces are all joined together to work in one piece to finish off the top. It comes in eight sizes and is available in English and French.

You can also pair lacy sleeves with an otherwise plain top, like on the Starflower Wrap from Annelise Driscoll Gingrow. This intermediate pattern makes a wrap sweater with generous lacy sleeves and a double wrap belt. The pattern has nine sizes, from XS to 5XL, and is available for free from Hobbi.