Knitting Feathers

As ever I have spent the first week of the year tidying up last years accumulated bits and bobs which have found a temporary Christmas home or a more permanent lodging in my workshop. Had to do something a bit more radical this year to better accommodate the extra craft related gear I have also acquired.  So have been shifting tool racks and making space for more shelves.

While moving things around I came across a little square of knitting I did on two feathers. I remember having a go at this after I read an item on the web about knitting on the West Coast of Ireland.  I had been trying to find some Aran wool from Achill Island, the article described learning to knit on goose quills and other makeshift needles such as sticks of willow and bicycle spokes.

I didn’t have any goose quills but there are always pigeon feathers in the garden so I had a go on two of these. They worked quite well, smooth with just a little grip too and the curve made them easy to hold. Even less excuse now for not getting on with some knitting even when the needles have been left at home.

You can read more of the article about traditional knitting in Ireland at

http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/aemblem/sweaters.html

Back to square one with joined up knitting - don't forget to plan your knitting

Baby blanket reverse side

Oh dear! Sometimes its just the basics that trip you up. I have a habit, not a very clever one I know now, of setting off with some random knitting without really knowing what it going to become. This happens most often when we are setting off somewhere in the car and I haven't had chance to organise some knitting to do while in the passenger seat. I often end up just throwing an odd ball of wool and some knitting needles in my bag and start casting on... Something like this happened a few weeks ago.

I had half an idea about making a baby blanket  with little sheep motifs and I some nicely toning shades of cream, brown and grey. But I had already knitted a small mountain of  4" stocking stitch squares before I realised that adding  a 1" border between all the squares was not going to be a very neat idea. And that the grey wool - an early attempt at hand spinning - was far too rough for a baby blanket. So three tone became two tone and half the squares had to be re-knitted.

Joining up the squares remained a problem.  Montese Stanley's Handknitter's Handbook couldn't help me. She devoted a whole chapter to edges and joining emphasising over and again  the particular importance of  formation of the edge stitches on any piece of knitting. I tried several methods of joining with contrast wool but none were really satisfactory. James Norbury's single and wise suggestion was to begin and end each square with 2 rows of garter stitch and begin and end each row in the same way. Making it possible to join with a simple flat seam.

Joined up squares

Some progress has at last been made. I liked the idea of having ridges around the squares on one side and I have finally achieved this by using my linker and my sewing machine. But all those ends to sort out - what a chore and what a time waster!

I will never go down the road with small squares again or set off without a proper plan and preparation. My old Grandma, who knitted all those huge blankets, will be laughing her socks off.