Despite there being lots of reviews that say the Knitpicks Options interchangeable needles are lacking in quality control, due to some join issues, I love these needles. I bought the set of Harmony's last year, and have been using them non stop since.
I have never had any issues with the joins coming undone, and yes, it DOES help to remember to use the key to tighten them completely. None of the male parts have been stripped so that they are not functional.
I love the smooth join on these needles, and feel that the points are better made than even Addi Lace. Those of us who do lacework or knit through the back loops understand just how important pointy needles can be.
My only complaint so far is that the cord lengths are limited, but nothing that a little creativity can't fix. I liked the idea of the Denise interchangeables having the links that you could connect two cords together to get a correct length, but hated those needles with a passion. The Knitpicks needles are of a better quality, and also seem to last longer, so lack of cord options would not prevent me from recommending them to EVERYONE in the knitting community.
Now if only I had the money to buy the set of original Options....
Monday, January 12, 2009
Eucalan No Rinse Wool Wash
Eucalan No Rinse Wool Wash
I have always had recommendations from my local yarn shops (yes, there is more than one) saying that Eucalan is the way to go with washing your handknits.
Being willing to experiment, I bought one of the sample bottles, and used it on a swatch for a yarn review. I must say, I certainly didn't smell anything that resembled grapefruit when the swatch was soaking.
The swatch was fairly clean to begin with. And, to be fair, the Eucalan does appear to do its job of cleaning and removing grime without that pesky rinsing.
My only issue is the smell. The wool wash itself smells VERY (and I do mean very) faintly of grapefruit straight out of the bottle, but when it is added to water, the scent promptly vanishes.
I think this is probably a good wash for when you don't want anything overly perfume-y on your woolens, because there was no scent left on the swatch at all.
Overall, it cleans well, didn't appear to damage the fibers (the most important thing), and for ease of use, it gets an A+ because of the rinsing not being necessary. Scent-wise, there are three scents, and being that I have only tried the grapefruit scent, I cannot say if the others are any better or worse.
Personally, I prefer something with a little more of a scent that says "Hey, I'm clean and fresh", so Eucalan may not be my first choice. But as far as cleaning and freshening goes, it does well.
I have always had recommendations from my local yarn shops (yes, there is more than one) saying that Eucalan is the way to go with washing your handknits.
Being willing to experiment, I bought one of the sample bottles, and used it on a swatch for a yarn review. I must say, I certainly didn't smell anything that resembled grapefruit when the swatch was soaking.
The swatch was fairly clean to begin with. And, to be fair, the Eucalan does appear to do its job of cleaning and removing grime without that pesky rinsing.
My only issue is the smell. The wool wash itself smells VERY (and I do mean very) faintly of grapefruit straight out of the bottle, but when it is added to water, the scent promptly vanishes.
I think this is probably a good wash for when you don't want anything overly perfume-y on your woolens, because there was no scent left on the swatch at all.
Overall, it cleans well, didn't appear to damage the fibers (the most important thing), and for ease of use, it gets an A+ because of the rinsing not being necessary. Scent-wise, there are three scents, and being that I have only tried the grapefruit scent, I cannot say if the others are any better or worse.
Personally, I prefer something with a little more of a scent that says "Hey, I'm clean and fresh", so Eucalan may not be my first choice. But as far as cleaning and freshening goes, it does well.
Tool Review: The Fibersphere
The Fibersphere, (photos from http://www.thefibersphere.com)
There are always new and clever ways to carry around your balls of yarn. Yarn-tainers, plastic bags, and other plastic toys that seem to be okay for a while, but only until you have to move the knitting and ball of yarn, and discover that you have to CUT the yarn to remove it from the carrying case.
Enter the Fibersphere. Not only is it cleverly designed into a clamshell design, with the hole on the center of the opening, so that you don't have to cut the yarn to remove the project, but it also has uber smooth edges so even loosely spun angora does not snag!
This was a buy on a whim a few months ago for me. I figured, why not? And let me tell you, I was not disappointed. This is a great for carrying/protecting even the LARGEST of balls (2200 yards of merino, anyone?) and comes in two sizes, the 5" and 7" clamshell.
There is even a choice between a pink and a clear balls, and a drawstring plastic/pvs bag, so that you can tie it to your knitting bag and knit while walking.
The pricing varies between $24 and $27 depending on size. I bought one of each size, and really enjoy that they allow either center pull balls or hand wound balls with ease. You can even squash one of the long skeins into a Fibersphere with no trouble.
Silk or angora slide easily through the hole and knit with ease without the slightest snag, and are protected from purse fuzz and knitting bag mishaps.
Final verdict? If you can afford it, buy a Fibersphere instead of any other yarn containing device. The extra few dollars are worth it.
Yarn Review: Plymouth Baby Alpaca Brush Solids
Plymouth Baby Alpaca Brush
Color: Plum #1805
Dye Lot: 254
Gauge: 3.5 sts/inch on US 9/5.5mm
Content: 80% Baby Alpaca
20% Acrylic
In the ball, Baby Alpaca Brush resembles a small Tribble. It is incredibly soft, and has good loft, but a lot of fuzz can be seen. It has an incredible plum color, and has slight variations in thickness, due to the loosely spun alpaca fiber.
I decided to start right in on a scarf for my sister in law, and chose a simple lace pattern. The Thistle Lace pattern was published in the Interweave Knits Summer 2006 issue, in their Thorn and Thistle Twinset by Joan Forgione. I apologize for the lack of links, but since the only archived photos are on Ravelry, I felt it wasn't fair for those not beta-testing the site. If you are on Ravelry, you can go here to access the pattern photos. Otherwise, go to Interweave Knits and about 3/4 down the page is a small blurb about the twinset.
This yarn is very fluffy and fuzzy, but seems to hold up very well to being frogged. I've already made several errors in the lace pattern that required me to rip back twice, and the yarn did not stick (unlike mohair) and even after reknitting, did not appear to be worse for wear.
Due to the loft of the fibers, this is a great yarn for cold weather items, although I wouldn't recommend it for high wear items, due to the nature of loosely spun yarn for pilling. A scarf or a pair of arm warmers seem to fit the bill, since this yarn is uber soft, and perfect for next-to-skin wear.
When washed in approximately 100 degree water, the swatch released a small amount of dye, but nothing that was surprising. I used Eucalan No Rinse wash and simply submerged the swatch (no felting here!) Now the swatch is sitting on white paper towels. After a quick press under some more paper towels, a little bit of dye was visible on the towels. I can only say that you should probably wash the articles before giving them to anyone, as the amount bled out would be an issue if one was to wear white.
Here you can see the amount of dye that was released.
There is a bit of dye that was released on the paper towels, so please be aware that bleeding may occur.
Once dry, there was no noticeable dye loss on the actual swatch. And rest assured that the swatch did fluff back up a bit after it dried. The lace pattern is a little more noticeable even though I did not pin it down. Also, the swatch did not grow noticeably after its bath. So rest assured that your measurements will be pretty accurate
Wendy Bernard Book Signing
Wendy Bernard Book Signing
Last night (10/11/08) was the Wendy Bernard book signing at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, Washington.
It was a smaller and cozier group of people, and was essentially a Q&A then signing. Wendy is a very down to earth, kind of funky personality, who is outgoing, despite admitting she was nervous at this being the first book signing she had done. She simply answered questions and gave us a little peek into what it's like to be an author, and also a knitwear designer.
She said, that while the book, Custom Knits, was fun to write, she wasn't making a ton money off of it, and was able to afford her daughter's tuition only through the pattern sales on her website. I, for one, figured that the royalties from a book weren't substantial, but I thought there would at least be some profit. As it turns out, the publisher gives you a payment of royalties, and most of that money before the book is published, was put towards supplies for making the book (yarn, etc) Hopefully, once the book sells enough copies to offset the original cost of the book, Wendy will see a profit. Also, she had hired NO test knitters for the book's designs. Yep. Wendy knit them all, in the span of about five months, and ended up with a hip injury to boot. Talk about doing something for the joy of it and love of the craft, huh?
Wendy Bernard explained that she tried to make this, her first book, more of a formula, versus a pattern, book. She wanted to empower the knitter to make her/his own choices as to how to make a sweater or a top, and to figure out on their own how to get the desired result. This is powerful, and most books, while they give a little leeway as to changes that can be made, do not approach the knitter and knitwear in that way.
This is a wonderful book, and is made all the more special, after meeting Wendy (and letting her borrow a sharpie) because it truly is her voice that shines through in the book, despite the editing and processing that goes into publishing a book. It was quite a refreshing treat to meet someone who went from zero to sixty as far as knitwear design goes. She started knitting 5 years ago, and also started designing at the same time. Who else of us can say that?
All in all, it was a great time, and was made even more special by the personalized notes she put in all the books. Thanks for coming to Seattle, Wendy!
Last night (10/11/08) was the Wendy Bernard book signing at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, Washington.
It was a smaller and cozier group of people, and was essentially a Q&A then signing. Wendy is a very down to earth, kind of funky personality, who is outgoing, despite admitting she was nervous at this being the first book signing she had done. She simply answered questions and gave us a little peek into what it's like to be an author, and also a knitwear designer.
She said, that while the book, Custom Knits, was fun to write, she wasn't making a ton money off of it, and was able to afford her daughter's tuition only through the pattern sales on her website. I, for one, figured that the royalties from a book weren't substantial, but I thought there would at least be some profit. As it turns out, the publisher gives you a payment of royalties, and most of that money before the book is published, was put towards supplies for making the book (yarn, etc) Hopefully, once the book sells enough copies to offset the original cost of the book, Wendy will see a profit. Also, she had hired NO test knitters for the book's designs. Yep. Wendy knit them all, in the span of about five months, and ended up with a hip injury to boot. Talk about doing something for the joy of it and love of the craft, huh?
Wendy Bernard explained that she tried to make this, her first book, more of a formula, versus a pattern, book. She wanted to empower the knitter to make her/his own choices as to how to make a sweater or a top, and to figure out on their own how to get the desired result. This is powerful, and most books, while they give a little leeway as to changes that can be made, do not approach the knitter and knitwear in that way.
This is a wonderful book, and is made all the more special, after meeting Wendy (and letting her borrow a sharpie) because it truly is her voice that shines through in the book, despite the editing and processing that goes into publishing a book. It was quite a refreshing treat to meet someone who went from zero to sixty as far as knitwear design goes. She started knitting 5 years ago, and also started designing at the same time. Who else of us can say that?
All in all, it was a great time, and was made even more special by the personalized notes she put in all the books. Thanks for coming to Seattle, Wendy!
Riddle Me This
So my front page section on pnn.com was flagged as being "Inappropriate" huh, what?! I have no idea why, considering, it just has stuff like "what's on the needles, and podcasts I listen to" So glad I don't post there anymore.
In order to preserve my previous posts, the stuff that follows is what I am taking off of the pnn website. This is all my original work, so don't get all uppity. And it lets you see what was new last year. :D
In order to preserve my previous posts, the stuff that follows is what I am taking off of the pnn website. This is all my original work, so don't get all uppity. And it lets you see what was new last year. :D
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
IRL-an update
Plague has hit the Pandora household. Between me fighting migraines, and LB's little stint with a cold from hell, we are the plague bunnies.
This means that A) I did not go to work today and earn my keep
B) I was utterly non productive on everything
C) I spent most of the day in bed, sleeping
Tonight I shall knit more on the Central Park Hoodie, I would like to finish the back tomorrow, as I am almost to the top of the armhole shaping. And then I will have to start on the fronts. And also valiantly fight the plague some more.
Cheers
This means that A) I did not go to work today and earn my keep
B) I was utterly non productive on everything
C) I spent most of the day in bed, sleeping
Tonight I shall knit more on the Central Park Hoodie, I would like to finish the back tomorrow, as I am almost to the top of the armhole shaping. And then I will have to start on the fronts. And also valiantly fight the plague some more.
Cheers
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