ConnieLene – KnitDesigner

I have been knitting for more than 50 years. Did you notice, I said that out loud. I have probably been knitting for more than 55 years, as the actual start date is lost in mists of time.

When I was a much younger knitter, Feather and Fan was used for baby things like shawls, matinee jackets and bonnets. I used feather and fan stitch when knitting for my own babies.

Since that time, until now that is, feather and fan stitch and I have not crossed needles and yarn together (or paths or swords).

I have rediscovered the beauty and the simplicity of this stitch pattern and am now designing pieces using it.

I really love the effect of it with the variegated yarns above and now as you can see, I am knitting with a cream yarn looking at the affect of the stitch on the edges of the knitting.

But my circular needle on which is sitting my wrap all excited and ready to go – BROKE – and I do not have another spare 4.5mm circular needle. And yes, I know the wrap is being knitted in cream; I know it looks like baby stuff, but when it is finished, if ever, it will look like a gorgeous, warm, sexy, delicious, and feather light wrap and I am or was enjoying the wavy affect on the edges.

BUT it is raining and the wind is blowing, and to purchase another such needle will mean adding lots of layers and walking about 20 mins along narrow Haarlem streets, across a draw bridge over a canal (the Spaarne) and along and along to the wool shop Kleinvak van der Raad where they do not mind my lack of Dutch and probably giggle at some of the yarns I buy to try. But that is okay.

And today I just do not feel like it. In short I am really and truely hacked off. I might have to open the wine!

Wave Lattice Stitch is created over a multiple of 6 stitches plus 2 (6 + 2).

I worked my sample over 50 stitches to see how it would work as a jacket edging and I do believe it will work very well.

Cast on 50 stitches.

Row 1 (WS) knit 1, *knit 2, purl 4*. Repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 2 knit 1, *slip next 2 stitches to cable needle and hold in front of work, knit 2, knit 2 from the cable needle, Purl 2*, repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 3 (WS) knit 1, *knit 2, purl 4*. Repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 4 Knit 1, purl 2 *Knit 2, slip next 2 stitches to cable needle and hold in back of work, knit 2, purl 2 from cable needle*, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, knit 5.
Row 5 (WS) knit 1, *purl 4, knit 2* repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 6 knit 1, *purl 2, slip next 2 stitches to cable needle and hold in back of work, knit 2, knit 2 from cable needle*, repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 7 (WS) knit 1, *purl 4, knit 2* repeat from * to last stitch, knit 1.
Row 8 Knit 5, *slip next 2 stitches to cable needle and hold in front of work, purl 2, knit 2 from cable needle. Knit 2*, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, purl 2, knit1

Repeat rows 1 – 8 to length required

My sample was created using 8 ply (double knitting) yarn. I do not have a label, but know that it has a component of possum yarn with merino. It is a bit hairy – so will not use it in my knitting, hence I am playing with it.

I will add a photographs of any pieces that I complete using this stitch.

I recently did a bit of a rave about Grannyg. She, that is Grannyg has a mission to save the world – one craft at a time, and she is doing very well at it, even on her own – she knits, spins, weaves, sews and bakes (I am told gloriously well). Oh, and she drinks coffee. I guess she must also drink tea given that the website is called Crafternoon Tea with Grannyg or maybe the name was a decision born to fill a rhyming need as Crafternoon Coffee with Grannyg does not work at all well.

Well Grannyg and I had a long talk a couple of weeks ago and today the podcast is up and ready so if you are at all curious about podcasts on crafts in, or to do with New Zealand and New Zealanders then do listen to it.

episode 36i – ConnieLene Johnston

Now I am Danish born, but I certainly sound like a New Zealander as you will hear. It is not so surprising as I have lived in New Zealand since December 28th 1948. Of course it is possible that it was the 29th, I just can’t quite recall, it being a wee while ago and at that time I was of an age where dates were not quite so important to me.

We established I have a long history with New Zealand including the craft / art / knitting world and as such am qualified to be interviewed, and what a fun interview that was. It did run on a bit, as it does when you are discussing stuff dear to your heart and it was great fun. Fortunately Grannyg being a very technically au fait granny, she has edited it a bit.

And if you think I laugh and sound like a smoker – believe me I am not and have never been. I spoke to Best Beloved about that and he reminded me that on the day I had a bad air day. What do you think of that – he noticed my bad air day, never ever notices my bad hair days. He was downstairs while Grannyg was interviewing me, or was that while we were talking about stuff we both love. No, it really was an interview.

Isn’t technology great – we spoke across the airwaves, and now I can, and I hope you do as well, we can listen to it over the airwaves – clear as day.

Sorry – I forgot say – we are living in Haarlem, in the Netherlands, In North Holland, which is why this was an interview via the ether. I am calmer about ether today you will note. We have been here in the Netherlands just over 2 years and will return to New Zealand late next year. In the meantime my Best Beloved is working, and I am designing and knitting, just filling in the days with yarn, ideas, colours and even patterns.

I hope these patterns and I probably have several hundred partially written or connie knithand notes that will become patterns. These here patterns are to be sold so I can continue my passion for yarns. I will quietly curl up my toes as the New Zealand pension is unlikely to be sufficient to cover my yarn needs.

Unique Boutique Knits – with my knit patterns

Please go look and then listen. It will help Grannyg with her quest and with luck it will also help me with mine – and please forward the link.

There it is, I have been blithering on about communication and I missed a really great question from a lovely artist/designer on Facebook. Today I did something I have not done on Facebook before – I checked the tab “Just Others” and there was the question from May 2010.

The question was “Where can I learn more about your method of intarsia freeform knitting?”

Now that should have sprung out and said “Hey, Here I am”!!!, and I missed it.

There are books out there and much on the internet explaining Intarsia, but my free form Intarsia, there is no resource available as yet that I am aware of.

And so there is no single easy answer to the question, although I am working on an answer to it as I am putting together a book proposal.

For the design on the piece I consider the shape of the canvas, which might be a sweater or a cloak, or a jacket; and the person or exhibition for whom this piece is being created, and then I work to the idea or concept. In other pieces I might simply change the colours and yarn types as I feel, as I view what I am creating.

Very very basically, I sort yarns by colour, texture and weight (more or less as I don’t let the weight drive my work) and then I knit (play) always with the idea or concept in my mind or on the sketch.

The biggest hurdle for most knitters is to plan too much, and while I do plan, that is I have a canvas, which is the shape of the knitted piece, and concept and colour group, then I just knit.

I would love to run workshops on working with intarsia generally and including freeform work, or on “Playing with colour and yarn”. I hope I will have the opportunity to do that when I return to New Zealand.

I am working on a proposal for a book which will have basic knit designs, Instruction on working in the Intarsia method, a planned intarsia design for each knit design, as well as exercises to play with the yarns and colours and so go on to work on a free form intarsia design within the knitted design.

There is a lot work even in putting together a proposal as I am sure you all know, and of course I have to convince a publisher that it is worth their while.

Right now I am working on a vest for myself. It is so unusual for me to create a piece for me, but I am. I am deciding just how I shall include the intarsia. I have all the yarn (many colours). I am already knitting a k2 p2 rib band and constantly looking at the yarns out of the corner of my eyes, wondering how will I use it.

That started me thinking about my very first intarsia knit. It was a sweater for my son. It was so cute, it was in two colours, chocolate brown and cream. The intarsia (a word I had never heard of) was so simple and it started me on the wild wild world of free form knit intarsia. Prior to that my intarsia work had all been in crochet.

I crocheted shawls and vests in the main. And I created all sorts of weird and unusual shapes with the yarn that I had available to me.

My very first crochet commission was for 3 crocheted shawls and a poncho. They were many coloured, but formal – that is no free form work at all. The patterns if I remember correctly, might have been from the Mon Tricot magazine which I just adored. Yes, I created for sale shawls from someone elses patterns, and I was even paid to do it.

Shock, horror now.

That was in the very early 70′s. I knew nothing of copyright at that time.

BUT back to the first knit intarsia.

It was a bought pattern and it may have been a Shepherd pattern, I simply can’t remember. But it was a straight forward sweater (jersey or jumper). The cuffs and a band of about 10 or 12 stitches straight up the front were in cream and the remainder of the sweater was chocolate brown.

I had to learn how to twist the yarn so there were no holes at the join of the two colours. It was knitted in pieces – back, front, 2 sleeves, something I rarely do today. But it started me exploring knitting and the excitement was probably not immediate but it slowly simmered and very soon I was creating wild, wonderful and wacky intarsia sweaters, jackets, vests and cardigans.

I still love my wild and wacky knits.

And now I am going to knit a wild and wacky vest for me. I still haven’t decided in what way I shall incorporate the intarsia but I will.