Friday, September 02, 2011

Twins or Cousins?



They are not identical twins that I know! First I thought I would strive for fraternal twins but maybe they turned out to be just cousins. You see I was using up small little balls of yarn for a class I took up at the Sock Summit.

The class was

Knitted Tessellation: Playful and Powerful Patterns in Practice

The teacher: Franklin Habit

When I first read the class description it sounded really exciting and it was a great class. I loved Franklin and he was organized and well informed. Over all a good class.

A hands-on introduction to the creation of tessellations: motifs that interlock without gaps or overlaps. Tessellations are as old and pervasive as design itself; they can be found in some of the most ancient examples of human craft, and were famously used in the modern era by the artist M.C. Escher. In this class, we will discuss the theories behind tessellating, and put into practice the basic techniques for creating tessellated patterns in hand-knitted fabrics.

There was homework:

Yarn: Sock- or fingering-weight yarns in solid or semi-solid colors. Two balls in highly contrasting colors if you wish to work in stranded colorwork; one ball if you choose to work in knit/purl texture patterns. (If the latter, white or a light solid color is preferred.) Needles: Any size appropriate to the yarn(s) selected–either double-pointed or circular according to your sock knitting preference. Notions: Stitch markers (8), scissors, notebook, pencils (not pens) and erasers for sketching and charting.

Homework:

Using the sock knitting method of your choice, CO 64 stitches (using main color, if you choose to knit your class project in stranded colorwork) and work in k2, p2 ribbing for 1.5 inches. Do not cast off. And get a good night’s sleep.

Because I'm a good student I did as I was instructed and knit 64 stitch rib for 1.5".

When I got home I decided that I liked the idea and maybe had enough yarn to finish a sock. I had a tiny ball of Koigu and a tiny ball of hand spun that I did in Judith McKenzie's class the day before.

The Gentle Art of Spinning Socks

The only thing better than a handknit sock is one made from your own handspun. This class is all about spinning a sock yarn that will make a pair of socks that will last longer than it took to spin and knit them. It will help you decide what type of fiber to choose, how to prepare it, and how to spin it to make radiantly beautiful socks that will be a pleasure to make and a joy to wear.

After I completed the first sock I really liked how it looked so I reverse engineered it so it's kind of similar but not quite the identical twin.

1 comment:

Cat Bordhi said...

That sure is a handsome heel! I am so glad you have slipped into the abyss of sock knitting...hee hee hee.