Made with ColourMart yarns

Close up of baby Erin's Pram Throw design

Monday 20 October 2008 12:55:58 pm

Close up of the Acorn stitich design/crochet edge.

Beverley

5/14 MN nero navy and cardinal heavy dk 30/70 cashmere - merinos

Sunday 19 October 2008 1:41:22 pm

324 gr de nero navy et 3 gr decardinal : aiguilles n°4, 18m x 28rg pour 10 cm, pull à col roulé taille 36

Where do I Find?

Monday 13 October 2008 9:13:42 pm

Where do I find the pattern for the scarf that is shown above. I think it is gorgeous and would like to make this but I don't know which pattern book to purchase

Beverley's Danish traditional tie shawl

Sunday 12 October 2008 4:09:07 pm

Your shawl looks wonderful, Beverley. Lovely detail work and colors. Just in time for the colder weather too.

Barbara

merinos 100 %

Thursday 09 October 2008 12:11:41 pm

gilet à capuchon pour 6 ans : 296 gr de merinos lime et 35 gr de turquoise (Cavatina de 3 Suisses) 100% dralon. 24 x 34 aux aiguilles 3

camel shawl

Thursday 09 October 2008 2:43:46 am

Dear yenju,

That is a beautiful shawl. I love the colour. I am very tempted to try out this yarn. Can you tell me where you got the pattern from?

Thank you

Shirley

Close Up of Beverley's design

Friday 03 October 2008 1:05:31 pm

Hopefully you'll be able to see the piping effect in more detail.

Reply to Denise

Monday 15 September 2008 2:13:21 am

I'm glad sharing my swatches is helpful to you! You noticed that I knit eyelets into each swatch that correlate with the US needle size used. It's a slick trick I picked up from watching Lily Chin do a tips and trick segment on the former Knitty Gritty show on American TV. I do that for most all my swatches now. It makes it so easy to pick up a swatch I knit awhile back and know immediately what I did without having to dig for the notes I took at the time (which would most likely be lost in a huge stack somewhere). Good luck!!! I've narrowed my list of possible sweater patterns down to about 8 at this point. If only deciding on a pattern were as easy a choosing the yarn

I've added a better photo of the Tartan Rose swatch that was knit with US 5 (3.75mm) needles

beadntat
aka Kristina in Knoxville, TN, USA
www.beadntat.blogspot.com

Swatching 15/44 Extrafine Merino DK

Friday 12 September 2008 9:49:27 pm

Richard and Sue graciously granted my request for some samples of the 15/44 Extrafine Merino DK so I could verify the colors I was interested in and knit some swatches before deciding what to order. I'm venturing out from the skinny stuff and lace and planning to knit a nice sweater for the winter--a scary thing for me. My samples arrived yesterday and I immediately started swatching. I hope sharing my results will be helpful to others.

I received three 7g/~20 yd samples to evaluate: Tartan Rose, Tartan Green, and Geranium. I measured the yarn at ~13 wpi. Each swatch was knit using a different needle size. They were subsequently measured at three intervals: A) immed. after knitting, B) after handwashing in very warm water with shampoo and towel dried, but still damp, & C) after tumble drying for 15 minutes at the low/knit heat setting. My 1st swatch was knit from the Tartan Rose color - a rich blue red that leans towards an almost cranberry color, but is more muted than a cranberry would be. I used US 5/3.75mm Addi-Lace needles and cast-on 30 sts. My second swatch, the Tartan Green (deep blue green), was knit on US 6/4.0mm Addi-turbo needles over 30 sts. For the Geranium (bright pinky orange) sample I used US 7/4.5mm Add-Turbo needles and cast-on only 26 sts. Here are my gauge measurements:

Tartan Rose (US 5): A) 24sts x 32r/4" sq or 6st x 8r/" B) 26sts x 32r/4"sq or 6.5sts x 8r/" C) 24sts x 36r/4"sq or 6st x 9r/"
Tartan Green (US 6): A) 22sts x 30r/4"sq or 5.5sts x 7.5r/" B) 24sts x 30r/4"sq or 6sts x 7.5r/" C) 22sts x 34r/4"sq or 5.5sts x 8.5r/"
Geranium (US 7): A) 20sts x 28r/4"sq or 5sts x 7r/" B) 21sts x 28r/4"sq or 5.25sts x 7r/" C) 20sts x 34r/4"sq or 5sts x 8.5r/"

Note: While I no longer consider myself to be a "loose" knitter, I do knit with a relaxed hand and usually find I need to go down a needle size to get gauge when knitting with dk or larger yarns on US7 or larger needles.

Observations: The sample knit with US 5 needles had a firm, slightly dense feel to the fabric after knitting, but this firmness disappeared after washing and tumble drying. The final swatch was soft, with excellent stitch definition and would be perfect for cabled knitting or Aran style sweaters. The yarn itself is gently twisted, which contributes to the softness of the fabric, but was also more susceptible to splitting, esp. when using the pointy tipped Addi-Lace needles. I had no problems with splitting once I switched to the blunter tipped Addi-Turbo needles for the size 6 & 7 needles. All the swatches bloomed beautifully after tumble drying, but there was no evidence of felting despite the torture tugging and rubbing I gave each swatch during washing and after towel-drying. The sample knit on US 7 needles was clearly more open and stretchy after knitting and washing. The fabric at that point was more suitable for lace than something work in stockinette stitch. All the swatches pretty much maintained their stitch gauge after washing and drying, but they definitely decreased in height/increased row gauge. To compensate while knitting one might consider increasing the number of rows knit say, before decreasing for armholes or whatever.

Final thought: This yarn is simply scrumptious to knit with and deliciously soft after washing and a light tumble dry. It would make for wonderful garments, blankets, or baby things. Now I just have to dig in the corners of my budget and come up with the resources to order more cones than I originally planned on. It's that good !

beadntat
aka Kristina in Knoxville, TN, USA
www.beadntat.blogspot.com

100% extra fine merino 15/44NM dk wt 300g cone pink frost

Monday 01 September 2008 3:32:45 am

What heaven this yarn is. While it did split a little, it wasn't really a problem. The result is so soft and yummy.

I've even gently machine washed it and low-medium temp dried it in the clothes dryer, with the expected (I swatched!) little bit of shrinkage. But it's brought it all together just the way I wanted. Can't wait to restock with this yarn and try the other colours!