From fleece to tote bag and all stops in between - part five

This is the final step in the making of a tote bag from scratch; felting (or fulling). First let me explain the difference between felting and fulling; felting is the actual process of entangling fibres tightly together to make a solid material, raw wool is felted. Fulling is the process of partially felting knitted items to provide a stronger bond between stitches, knitted items like my bags are fulled. The process for felting or fulling is the same; everything your mum told you not to do with knitted clothing in the laundry.
If you are interested in wet felting wool, follow the link to a good tutorial.
If you are interested in fulling pure wool knitted (or crochet) items, follow this link to a good tutorial

My licorice allsorts bag, all ready to be fulled.

The bag is knitted up and looks just like licorice allsorts to me, so that's what I called it. The exciting thing about fulling knitted items is that you can never be sure how much or how fast the felting process will go, so the results are infinitely variable.
So here's how I go about it...
First I fill the washing machine with cold water and add some shampoo (which seems to make fulling go faster) I only just cover the items to be fulled so the water level is low. Then I switch the machine on (after fueling and starting the generator as we have no 240v electricity) and let it wash for a while. In the meantime I boil a big pot of water on the wood heater. Once the water is boiling I carefully carry the pot into the laundry and tip the hot water into the washing machine, this temperature change is generally enough to 'shock' the wool into felting. I then spin out the item and hang it to dry while stretching it into the shape I had intended as far as possible.

My bag after fulling, hanging in the sun to dry.

An example of the unpredictability of fulling; the dark blue and black stripes didn't felt as much as the other colours.

That is the end of the journey from fleece to tote bag. As you can see; it takes a while to get there, but the results are worth it.

Did you enjoy this series?
Should I do more of them?
What else would you like to read about?

From fleece to toe bag and all stops in between - the journey so far

A colourful pile of my home spun wool.

While I'm knitting the tote bag, I thought I would link all the posts in this series so far to one page. That way you can read it all together.

Just click the links below to read the entire story.

Part One 

Part two

Part three

Part four

From fleece to tote bag and all stops in between - part four

Now I have some dyed skeins of homespun wool to knit with, its time to cast on and start.

When I have an order for bags I ask the client some questions;
What bag shape?
What colours?
What stitch pattern?

In this case, my client has chosen the petite bag, in black and rainbow colours with the Asthore stitch pattern. So I dug out my bag of reclaimed embroidery wool and saved scraps of pure wool and spliced them together using the Russian join to make two rainbow balls of wool.

My reclaimed scrap wool pile.

Joined together to make...

Huge balls of rainbow wool

Now I have everything I need; black homespun, reclaimed rainbow, circular needles and coffee. Away we go.

My favourite bag pattern of the moment is the petite felted bag.

I begin by casting on eight stitches (four on each needle) using a 'figure 8 cast on'

I then knit the base of my bag by increasing stitches every second row., as indicated by the pattern.
Once the base is big enough I choose a slip stitch pattern and start knitting.
So far I have used these slip stitch patterns to make bags;
Asthore
Dog's tooth cross
Yin Yang
Fretted mosaic

The base of my bag is started. Eight stitches on each side have been increased to twelve.

The entire base is done; a total of 154 stitches. I am using the Asthore pattern so I needed to add a few stitches to make the number a multiple of 16 (Asthore is a 16 stitch pattern).

And the colour knitting begins. 

The pattern is beginning to emerge.

This is the quickest part of making felted bags, I can take my knitting anywhere and fill in free moments and I can settle down to a quiet evening watching a movie while I knit too.

Next step; felting. Stay tuned.

Note; I do apologise for my photography, most of the photos are taken in the evening with my phone so they don't show true colour and are not well focused.

From fleece to tote bag and all stops in between - part three

Time to dye my skeins of wool....

I love using natural dyes, they give such varied results and each pot is unique.
However, for making my tote bags I need large amounts of the same colours so I use commercial acid dyes.

Using acid dyes is so easy and  the results are beautiful.
Here's how I do it (I'm sure there are easier ways).

Here is my washed and set skein. No dye.

First the skein gets another wash (there is a lot of washing in spinning)

Then I gather the ingredients I need for dying; vinegar, the dye and a big fork for fishing the skeins out of boiling dye.

A damp but clean skein of wool

The dye is mixed with water in a stainless steel pot and bought to the boil. I added a good dash of vinegar to the mix too.

The wool is added to the pot, which is still on the stove being heated to a low simmer. Smelling strongly of  vinegar and wet wool now.

When I judge the wool is dark enough...I fill the sink with clean, hot water and rinse the skein. Then I rinse again, and again until the water is clear.

The finished skein, dyed black (even though it doesn't look it)

A close up 

A finished skein.

Next I begin to knit a bag...........see you then.

Knitting socks for competition

I love knitting, it takes me to a different place. I learned the basic knit stitch from my mother and several aunties when I was a little girl, but I soon forgot them as I became interested in other things (horses, boys and horses). Two years ago I decided to try knitting again as a way to relax from study and the pressures of life; I loved it.

 My favorite thing to knit at the moment is socks, so I decided to try a fiendishly difficult pattern to enter in the CWA Land Handicraft competition. I have been dabbling in Fair Isle and stranded knitting for a while and I love the idea of painting a picture with my knitting so I decided on a charted pattern by Karin Aida called 'Gimmee coffee' (I thought it was apt).

The rules state that the socks must be of natural fibres and hand knitted, so I went off to the craft shop and spent a pleasant hour or so browsing and dreaming in the knitting isle while my (very patient) partner shifted restlessly from foot to foot, inspected his watch and cleared his throat at ever decreasing intervals. I eventually decided on a bamboo and wool blend yarn in cream and taupe.

I first needed to transcribe the chart to a written pattern, which took ages, and then I was ready to cast on. I used a really simple, toe up, two at a time, magic loop pattern with a short row heel (sock knitters will know what I mean) as my base pattern and just added the colour knitting in the appropriate places.

Basic sock pattern
I cast on 20 stitches (on each needle) and increased to 38 stitches (on each needle) using the method outlined by the tutorial (click on the heading above to access the tutorial).
I began the instep and sole patterns once the toe section was complete.

I made my toe colour A and my contrast colour B

Instep pattern
row
1- Knit all with colour A
2- Knit all with colour A
3- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A.
4- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
5- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, * end with 2A
6- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
7- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
8- Knit all with colour A
9- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
10- 1A, 1B. 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
11- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B,* end with 2A
12- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B,  1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
13- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A
14- Knit all with colour A
15 to 20- repeat rows 3 to 8
21- 12A, 13B, 13A
22- 2A, 2B, 6A, 17B, 6A, 2B, 3A
23- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
24- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
25- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
26- 3A, 2B, 7A, 13B, 7A, 2B, 4A
27- 11A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 12A
28- 3A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B, 4A
29- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
30- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
31- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
32- 2A, 2B, 4A, 18B, 7A, 2B, 3A
33- 9A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 12A
34- 11A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 12A
35- 2A, 2B, 8A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 8A, 2B, 3A
36- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 9B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
37- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 25A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
38- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
39- 3A, 2B, 10A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 2B, 4A
40- 14A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 15A
41- 14A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 15A
42- 3A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 4A
43-2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
44-1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
45- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
46- 2A, 2B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 11A, 2B, 3A
47- 15A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 16A
48- knit all with colour A
49 to 54- repeat rows 9 to 14.

Sole pattern
row
1- Knit all with colour A
2- Knit all with colour A
3- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A.
4- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
5- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, * end with 2A
6- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
7- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
8- Knit all with colour A
9- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
10- 1A, 1B. 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
11- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B,* end with 2A
12- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B,  1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
13- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A
14- Knit all with colour A

Repeat rows 3-14 a TOTAL of 4 times, then repeat rows 3-8 once.

Leg pattern

The split in the middle of each row (/) indicates where I change from the front needle to the back one. I found that when knitting two at a time I had to knit the row up to the split twice (once for each sock) then go on and knit the row after the split twice.

row
1- Knit all
2-1A, 5B, 33A/ 5B, 33A
3- 7B, 6A, 13B, 12A/ 7B, 6A, 13B,B, 9A, 12A
4- 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 9A, 1B/ 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 9A,1B
5- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 8A, 1B/ 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 8A, 1B
6- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 7A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 7A, 1B
7- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 1B
8- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 1B
9- 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 2B/ 1B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 1B
10- 7B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A, 1B/ 6B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11b, 1A, 2B, 11A
11- 1A, 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 12A/ 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 11A
12- 1A, 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 3A/ 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 2A,
13- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 2A/ 1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 1A
14- 2A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/ 1A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B
15- 2A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/ 1A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
16- 3A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2b, 1A/ 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B,
17- 3A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/ 2A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B,
18- 15A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 1A/ 14A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B

19- 29A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/ 28A, 3B, 3A, 3B
20- 16A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 2A/15A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 1A
21- 16A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 3A/15A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 2A
22-1A, 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 3A/ 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 2A
23- 7B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A, 1B/6B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A
24- 2B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
25- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
26- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A,1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 1B
27- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
28- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 1B
29- 2B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B
30- 7B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 1B/6B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A
31- 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 10A/ 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 9A
32- 1A, 5B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 3A/5B, 2A,1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A,5B, 2A
33- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 2A/1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 1A
34- 2A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/1A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B
35- 2A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/1A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
36- 3A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/2A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 90A, 2B, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
37- 3A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/2A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
38- 10A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/9A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
39- 11A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 5A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 5A, 3B, 3A, 3B
40- 12A, 2B, 16A, 7B, 2A/11A, 2B, 16A, 7B, 1A
41- 31A, 5B, 3A/30A, 5B, 2A
42- 1A, 5B, 25A, 5B, 3A/5B, 25A, 5B, 2A
43- 7B, 6A, 13B, 6A, 3B, 3A, 1B/6B, 6A, 13B, 6A, 3B, 3A
44- 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 4A, 3B, 2A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 4A, 3B, 2A, 1B
45- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 1B,
46- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 10B, 1A, 5B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B/1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
47- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 1B
48- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 1B
49- 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 1B
50- 7B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A, 1B/6B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A
51- 1A, 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 12A/5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B. 11A
52- 1A, 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 3A/5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 2A
53- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 2A/1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7b, 1A
54- 2A, 3B, 4A, 19B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/1A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B
55- 2A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
56- 3A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
57- 3A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1b, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1b, 2A, 2B
58- 15A, 9B, 5A, 2b, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/13A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
59- 29A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 3A/26A, 3B, 3A, 3B,
60- 16A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 3A/14A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 1A
61- 16A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 4A/14A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 2A
62- 1A, 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1a, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 3A, 1B/4B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 2A
63- 7B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A3B, 3A, 2B/5B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A
64- 2B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 3B/3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
65- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
66- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 1B
67- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
68- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 1B,
69- 2B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1b, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 3B/3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B
70- 7B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 2B/5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A
71- 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 10A, 1B/4B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 9A
72- 1A, 5B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 3A, 1B/4B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 2A
73- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 3A/3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 1A
74- 2A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 2A/3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B
75- 2A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
76- 3A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
77- 3A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 6a, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
78- knit all.

At row 31 of the instep pattern

At row 31 of the sole pattern

At row 43 of the instep pattern

At row 43 of the sole pattern

At row 54 of instep pattern

At row 54 of sole pattern

Row 60 of the leg pattern, front view

Row 60 of the leg pattern, back view

And they are finished.

What a long term project this was.
I will send them off to the craft show, but I don't see myself winning; my eldest daughter tried to put them on and I have not left enough give in the legs to make it comfortable to put them on. This is a common problem for me when I do stranded knitting, I think I don't leave enough of a loop at the back of the work when I carry the yarn. Oh well, next time I will do better.

A cute colour knitting pattern to share. a guitar

I have been posting a lot of craft related things lately, simply because that is what I am doing at the moment. So I thought I would post just one more (that's what I tell myself about chocolates too).


I created this knitting pattern for one of my phone cosy designs but you could use it on any knitted item.

It's not very clear but the guitar is in white on blue on this phone cosy.

Guitar colour/stranded knitting pattern.

Name: Guitar
Note: For stranded knitting or knit,  purl patterns
Description:

row1: [k] 32
row2: [p] 32
row3: [k] 4,[p] 3,[k] 25
row4: [p] 20,[k] 2,[p] 2,[k] 5,[p] 3
row5: [k] 2,[p] 11,[k] 10,[p] 2,[k] 7
row6: [p] 6,[k] 25,[p] 1
row7: [k] 1,[p] 7,[k] 2,[p] 16,[k] 6
row8: [p] 6,[k] 25,[p] 1
row9: [k] 2,[p] 11,[k] 10,[p] 2,[k] 7
row10: [p] 20,[k] 2,[p] 2,[k] 5,[p] 3
row11: [k] 4,[p] 3,[k] 25
row12: [p] 32
row13: [k] 32
row14: [p] 32
row15: [k] 32
row16: [p] 32
row17: [k] 32
row18: [p] 32
row19: [k] 32
row20: [p] 32
row21: [k] 32
row22: [p] 32
row23: [k] 32
row24: [p] 32
row25: [k] 32
row26: [p] 32
row27: [k] 32
row28: [p] 32
row29: [k] 32
row30: [p] 32
row31: [k] 32
row32: [p] 32

Enjoy knitting this little pattern.

Fulled knit bags for the markets

I have been making knitted and fulled bags to sell at the markets. They are so much fun to make and each one is unique. I thought I would share one of the patterns I use.

This is the first fulled bag I made.

 I knit on the bus on the way to and from work and at lunch time, and I spin in the evening when I sit down, but I don't seem to be able to spin fast enough to keep up with my knitting. Instead I buy pure (and non-super washed) wool from second hand shops whenever I see it and use it to knit these bags.

This one is for the markets.

The pattern I would like to share today is one I have just finished knitting. As usual, I have complicated the process; I used the Petite Felted Bag pattern by Ann Linn to get the shape of the bag and the mosaic/ slip stitch pattern from the Asthore bag by Christi Wasson for the pattern.

This is the bag before fulling.

Don't be scared off by the fulling process, it's just doing on purpose what I have done by accident for years; machine washing pure wool until it becomes felt. Simply throw the finished bag into the washing machine with hot water for about fifteen minutes and then check, if the bag isn't felted enough just do it again. I love making these bags, they are easy to knit and full, they are very tough and fully washable. They stretch out a bit with use, but snap right back to their smaller size when washed (I wish I could say the same).


I really enjoy knitting; it keeps my hands busy so my mind can wander. Making something useful is always a pleasure too. I am setting my goal at about six fulled bags by December, so I can take them to a market somewhere and make enough to buy more wool.

Another pattern, unfulled as yet

A finished bag for the markets

Wool spinning advice

If you read this blog regularly, you will have noticed that I am somewhat hyperactive (adult ADHD) and so Like to skip from one thing to another constantly. I have many hobbies that I keep returning to after long breaks. One of the things I like to do is spin.....sheep and alpaca wool, cotton and hopefully one day silk. I just found a great post about how to spin sock yarn that I thought I would share with you.

Knit Better socks Blog

If you are interested in spinning at all, please have a read.

Some of my home spun wool; from left to right- Suffolk cross, natural - merino, chemical dyed - merino, natural.

My old Scotch tension Ashford Traditional spinning wheel.

The start of a reel of cotton; very slow preparing and spinning.

What I like to make from my wool. I didn't spin the red and green wool for these socks; unfortunately.