Dryer Spheroids...er balls

First, let me say that this is certainly not my original idea.  Lots of my friends make, use and love them.  What are they, you ask?  They are balls made out of wool, felted and used in the clothes dryer.  They beat up your clothes a bit so you don't have to use chemical fabric softeners.  And, for people who don't do well with the perfume in fabric softeners, they are a great substitute.  Claims have been made that they reduce the drying time, thereby saving energy and money. They also take care of static.  They probably last for years.  Any color wool will do.

One of the machine knitting guilds in Minnesota makes them and sells two at a time in a nice mesh bag to earn money to buy yarn for charity projects.  Nifty idea.

How to make:  you will find slightly different versions on the internet.  Here's how I did mine.  I used 100%  wool throughout.  First I wound a ball by hand, about 3-4 inches in diameter.  They shrink quite a bit when felted.  I  tacked down the yarn around the ball so that it wouldn't come unraveled in the wash.  The bottom ball shows how I hand sewed/tacked down the yarn.  (Not a very good picture, but you get the idea.)   I then wrapped the ball with wool roving, poking it into the ball with a needle felting needle in a few places.  Lots of people put the ball in an old nylon stocking and tie the ends for felting.  I tried that, and the roving grabbed onto the nylon as tight as can be. The roving and the nylon became one! It took a week, a little at a time pulling, coaxing, ripping the nylon off, inch by inch.  Lots of the roving came along with the nylon.  No fun!

So for the next ones, I was trying to come up with a solution to this issue.  I had purchased a bag of apples and they came in a nylon-ish, slippery, holey, woven bag.  Voila!  I used that, one dryer ball to the bag with lots of room around it and tied the ends before throwing into the washing machine for felting.  Worked like a charm.  No sticking.  So, that little hint will save you hours of frustration.  

You might want to felt your balls a few times so that they are sort of heavy, tight and dense.  (In case you were wondering, I don't think acrylic centers would work at all, nor would super wash wool.)  The ball pictured at the top will go through a few more washings before I use it regularly in the dryer.  Use them, 2 or more at a time,  with each load and see if they don't work well for you.  Maybe do your laundry when you don't need peace and quiet in the house because there will be some banging around in the dryer.

Why did I call them "spheroids"?  I can hardly believe this, but Blogger wouldn't upload the picture of the  "dryer balls" but would upload the  same picture re-named "dryer spheroids".   Hmmmm.......

OOPS!

Spelling error..........  I didn't think it looked right.  SO, I'm going to sashay into my knitting room and knit scented sachets.

Stocking Stuffer

Our  machine knitting guild has an annual holiday newsletter that has lots of ideas for gift giving or just for fun.  This is my contribution this year.  Easy and quick.  You could probably get a lot more creative with the idea, but it's a starting point anyway.  Great for using up bits of yarn that you don't know what else to do with.

Stocking Stuffer Idea:  Scented Sashays for Closets

Ingredients:

Package(s) of scented  filler  (I got mine at Michaels)

Lace trims that are already ruffled and ribbons, other decorative items;  Any yarn, a few ounces; Sewing machine

Any knitting machine

Recipe:

Guestimate your gauge so that you arrive at about 4” x 4” for the square and large enough for any shapes you might use.  Knit two sides separately with a closed cast on and a permanent bind off. For the heart, cut a template out of cardboard. Trace the heart onto one of the knit pieces.  (Ok to use any writing implement if you sew inside of the lines.)  Pin lace extending toward the center around the perimeter of the square/outline of the heart.  (See diagram below) Sew with sewing machine close to the edge.  Put the other side on top leaving a space to turn right side out.  Knit a little I cord for a hanger or use ribbon, again tucked to the interior. Machine sew the front to the back remembering to leave a space to turn right side out.  For the heart, sew just inside your tracing so the ink doesn’t show.  It is easier to cut off the excess knit fabric after you’ve sewn your shape.  Turn right side out.  Stuff with the scented filler.  Sew the opening shut by hand.

Other ideas:  use a fairisle pattern, tuck stitches, lace, words or names. Use different shapes.

2013 Charity Goal Reached

Finished my charity knitting for 2013.  I did 67 items plus one for good luck.  Actually, I did more than that because I lost count at one point.  But, I'll save the extras for next year.  This was a guild challenge----knit the same number of items as you are years old.  I didn't take a picture---forgot.

I checked the number of yards in my cones, added up the number of cones used (16 approx.) and found I had knitted almost 23 miles of yarn.  This doesn't count the mistakes, the waste yarn, the little pieces tossed for one reason or another.   That's a lot of miles, isn't it???  The baby items go to the Minnesota Visiting Nurses and the hats, scarves and mitts go to the Salvation Army.  Someone in the guild mentioned that the SA is giving 70,000 local needy children warm winter duds this year.  Wow! I didn't realize there were so many in need here.  The guild knit an awfully lot of hats, mitts, gloves, and scarves.  Don't know the total yet, but we maybe made a small dent in what is needed.  Lots of other guilds do the same. Hope our gal in charge of collecting the items does take a picture.

Have to admit, doing that many items put me off knitting for a few months.  Am just now getting my mojo back for machine knitting.  Good timing.  Winter is surely not that far off!

Tame those curling edges!

I got this idea from my friend, Sandy, who is a fantastic knitter and is very creative as well as practical.  You can see her web page at http://slisen.blogspot.com/

I'm on my second to the last charity item for the year and decided to knit one of Charlene Schafer's tuck baby blankets.  All turned out well except the edges curled more than I liked.  Enter Sandy's fix.  She folds and bastes the edges together with a contrasting color yarn.  Then she puts the blanket in the washing machine for a fairly gentle cycle and also in the dryer for a bit (not drying the blanket all the way.)  She lets the blanket air dry the rest of the way with the basting still in place.  Voila', the edges behave.  She says if you have some really stubborn edges, she refolds the opposite direction, bastes and repeats the wash/dry process.

Here are my before and after pics.  I guess I should have taken a pic of the curling edges, not just the edges basted.

 When dry:

  Worked like a charm.  Next time you have that problem with the curling edges, try Sandy's trick. It only takes about 10 minutes more to do the basting.

PS She said she usually does a running stitch as close to the edge as possible (rather than the kind of basting I did), but it appears that it doesn't matter when all is said and done.

A beautiful first time machine knit garment

Lynne, one of my readers, has knit her first garment on her LK 150 using the Baby Ballet pattern.  Isn't it beautiful?

I love the yarn colors.  Here's what she had to say about it:

Well after a lot of trial and error I have completed the ballerina cardigan - see photo attached. My very first machine knitted garment! I followed most of your pattern except that when it came to binding off for the sleeves once they were attached to the body, I used the back stitch bind off as it was too tight doing the bind off with the latch tool.

I had to redo a lot of things but am pleased with the result. I only used one ball of yarn and am wondering if you have a machine pattern for baby leggings that I can make to match the sweater?

I'd say she did a fantastic job.  One of the frustrations, if you want to call it that, of the plastic bed machines is that they have no gate pegs.  So, it's a little more complicated binding off around the gate pegs.  Do-able when you use a machine needle as a substitute for a gate peg, but might be cumbersome for a new knitter.  Definitely something to learn at some point, though.  If you do want to use the latch tool to pull the next stitch through the previous to bind off--- one trick is to hand knit the last row and pull the needle butt all the way back to make a large stitch.  Then when you pull the next stitch through the one on the latch tool, it should be the right size and not pull in.

Does anyone have a pattern for baby leggings?  Would be nice to help her out.

Would love to see any other Baby Ballets that have been knit from this pattern. 

Very Beginner Level Machine Knit Baby Ballet Sweater

I have two friends who are just starting out knitting on midgauge machines so I thought I'd post a baby sweater pattern that is an excellent learning pattern when just starting out.  It's not complicated and can be completed in short order, but the result is really cute. There are 4 sizes to the pattern. Since it goes so quickly, you can knit a bunch for charity and improve your skills as you go.

Baby Ballet Sweater on the Midgauge Machine by Mar Heck  Revised May, 2014

This is the perfect first baby sweater for a new machine knitter.  You don’t have to worry about ribbing on the bottom or cuffs.  You don’t have to learn how to short-row yet, which is usually how the neck is done.  You do learn a few basic tricks, like decreasing, hanging shoulders, picking up stitches and making I cords.  Hint---use waste yarn that is a totally different color than your main yarn so you can see what to pick up.

YARN:  Any yarn that knits to gauge below.  Size doesn’t matter too much if you are making this for charity.  If knitting for a present, you could knit one and determine if that’s the size you want and going from there, knit another since they go fast.  Use whatever yarn knits nice and easy on your machine.

Notes: 

·       You will do the bottom edges of the fronts, back and sleeves at a tighter tension on the tension dial for 4 rows than you do the body of the sweater so the roll hem is tighter.

·       Four I cord ties are attached to both sides to keep the sweater in place. 

·       Notice on the yellow sweater pictured at the end of the pattern, I did the front ties a couple of inches in for a chubbier baby, or just a different look. 

·       The sweater consists of 5 pieces plus four I cords.

·        You can skip the waste yarn and ravel cord to start each piece to save some time.  Ewrap on the required needles and every row for a few rows, pull all the needles to E position before you knit the row.  Remember to follow the pattern, though.  When you have enough knitting, you can hang some claw weights.  If you are not comfortable doing this, start with waste yarn and ravel cord.

FINISHED SIZES

  6 (12, 18, 24) months  Circle the number you need throughout the pattern.

GAUGE  5 st and 6 r = 1”  (20 st and 24 r = 4”) It’s a good idea to do a gauge swatch first to get the same gauge as the pattern.  If you have fewer stitches and rows to the inch, tighten your tension for the main pieces.  If you have too many stitches and rows to the inch, loosen your tension for the main pieces.

BACK
T3 Over 50(52, 56, 58) st cast on with waste yarn, knit a few rows, one row ravel cord.  E wrap with main yarn right on top of the ravel cord stitches.  RC 000, T 3, Knit 4 rows.  Change to T 6 (main tension).  RC000.  Knit to RC 60 (64,66,72).  Take off stitches in 3 parts.

First size:  17 shoulder st on WY, 16 neck bind off, 17 shoulder on WY

Second size:  18 shoulder on WY, 16 neck Bind off, 18 shoulder on WY

Third size: 19 shoulder on WY, 18 neck bind off, 19 shoulder on WY

Fourth size:  20 shoulder on WY, 18 neck bind off, 20 shoulder on WY

To take off in sections, put all but specified shoulder stitches/ needles on the right in hold, meaning all the way out towards you.  Set the carriage levers both sides to H (or consult your manual).  When you knit, only the first  stitches will knit and the carriage will slide over the others.  As you knit to the left, pull up on the yarn so that it doesn’t get caught under the carriage.  Knit 10 rows of waste yarn and remove these stitches by running the carriage with no yarn in it.  When done with the first shoulder, bind off the specified number of neck stitches with a back stitch bind off by hand (OR ANY BIND OFF YOU CHOOSE).   Remove these st from machine.  You’ll have hanging down the first shoulder on its waste yarn and the bound off neck stitches hanging down.  Now take your machine off hold so that the final section of stitches knit.  Knit 10 rows of waste yarn and one row with no yarn to remove from machine.

LEFT AND RIGHT FRONT AND NECK SHAPING—Do the decreases on one side for one front and on the other side for the other front.
T3 over 50 (52,56,58) st cast on with waste yarn, knit a few rows, one row ravel cord.  Ewrap with main yarn.  T 3 Knit 4 rows.  Change to T6 (main tension).RC 000.  Decrease for Neck shaping on one side of your knitting as follows: 

First size:

Example – On RC 3, decrease one stitch every two rows two times, meaning do the decrease on RC 3 and RC 5.  You can write in the in between row numbers if it helps keep track.

Second Size:

Third size:

Fourth size;

Do a full fashioned decrease this way:  Move 4^th stitch to 3^rd stitch so there are 2 st on that needle, then move the 3 stitches in toward the center with your 3 prong tool.  Put the empty N out of work.  This makes a dandy edge that doesn’t curl much.

                               

Take shoulder st off on waste yarn the same way you did the back shoulders. Knit the other front, decreasing on the opposite side.

SLEEVES
T 3, over 30 (32,36,40) sts Cast on with waste yarn, knit a few rows, one row ravel cord.  E wrap with main yarn. Knit 4 rows.  Change to T 6.  RC 000.

First size:  Increase one stitch both sides every 3 rows 8x (46st).  Knit to RC 30.

Second size:  Increase one stitch both sides every 3 rows 8x (48 st).  Knit to RC36.

Third size:  Increase one stitch both sides every 4 rows 7X (50 st).Knit to RC 40.

Fourth size:  Increase one stitch both sides every 5 rows 7x (54 st). Knit to RC 42.

To do full fashioned increase, move 3 st out one and pick up the purl bump at n to the center and hang on empty needle.

 When you reach the required number of rows, Take the sleeve off on a few rows of waste yarn without binding off.  (No need for ravel cord at the top.)

                                          

FINISHING
Seam shoulders-   With the right side of the sweater facing you, fold waste yarn so the purl bumps are easy to see.  Hang one back shoulder with right side facing you. Push to back of the bed. Hang matching front shoulder, wrong side facing you, into the hooks of the needles. Close the latches with your straight edge.  With a straight edge push front through back stitches in one fell swoop.  Check to make sure all stitches got pushed thru.   Carefully push all the N all the way out with a straight edge in one hand and push knitting to the back of the bed with the other hand.  With main yarn, main tension, knit one row from left to right.  Bind off.   Repeat for other shoulder.  Remove waste yarn at shoulders.

Sew Sleeves to body-  Hang side of body with right side facing you.  When you use a 3 prong tool, the stitches are spaced about right.  Shoulder seam at zero and 23 (24, 25, 27) stitches both sides of zero.  Hang one stitch in---in the same ditch all along so it looks perfect on the right side. Measure to make sure you have hung the same amount both sides.  Adjust if you need to.   Push to back of the bed, open the latches.  With the wrong side of the sleeve facing you, hang the 46(48, 50, 54) sleeve stitches in the hooks of the needles.  Close the latches.  Take a ruler or your long weight bar or your cast on comb and push these front stitches through the back stitches. (It needs to be at least as wide as your knitting.) Knit one row and bind off.  Remove the rest of the waste yarn

Seam sides and sleeves with a mattress stitch by hand.  Weave in yarn ends

TIES (4 of them) Pick up 3 stitches at the corners and side seams, one at a time.  Row counter to zero.  Do a 3 stitch I cord at T 3 for 100 rows or about 5-6 inches.   Bind off by putting the left  and right stitch on the center needle.  Cut the yarn at 3” and pull through the last stitch 2 X.  Hide yarn end into the I cord. Do the same on the other corner and each seam. 

I cord is short for “idiot cord”.  Some people call it a slip cord because the carriage slips over the stitches when going one direction.  To make, push 3 needles all the way out.  ewrap on those 3 needles.  All the others are out of work.  Put the lever on one side of the carriage to “Part”.  (Consult your manual.)  This means that when the carriage goes one way it knits and when it comes back the other way, it skips over the needles.   After a few rows, it starts to make a tube.  The needles go back to B position (working position) as you knit the first row.  Rather than weighting the I cord, you can hang on to the end with your left hand and run the carriage with your right hand.

Optional Embroidery – With yarn doubled, make a bunch of lazy daisy daisies down the fronts and on the sleeves.  Use a contrast color or same as main yarn.

Steam the sweater if you want. Careful so you don’t melt the acrylic.   The acrylic yarn should wash and dry nicely.

ABBREVIATIONS

WY  waste yarn

BO bind off

N  needle(s)

ST stitch(es)

CO cast on

RC row counter

T with number is the number to set the tension dial at.  EX: T6 is tension 6 on the dial

Dec  decrease

Incr  increase

H  holding position

This is a learning pattern for classes at the MKGM.  You can donate, gift or sell items made from this pattern, but please don’t claim the pattern as your own.  Thanks!