Flagel Knitting Files

So it is the eve of another of Paul's birthdays.  Last year I made him a pair of socks and he has carefully worn those socks whenever the weather requires it. This year I decided to knit him a nightcap, you know, like the one from Twas the Night before Xmas . The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads. And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap , Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap. The adventure began with a search for the pattern.  I wanted one of those old-fashioned type with a long tassel and the extended decreasing top.  I found a 1840 Nightcap by Franklin Habit , author of the blog named The Panopticon .  He is a wonderful photographer and now the redesigner of Paul's birthday nightcap. The 1840 Nightcap pattern originally   appeared in the 1840 edition of  The Workwoman’s Guide, By a Lady .    Habit corrected the pattern and translated it for the modern knitter.  You might be interested

Reading Wovember has been fascinating for me.  This morning I decided to view the video, Hefting , created by Eden Arts and it really got me thinking.  Before we get to my thinking let's talk about "hefting" with regard to sheep. Hefting   (or  heafing ) – the  instinct  in some breeds of (sheep) for keeping to a certain  heft  (a small local area) throughout their lives. Allows different farmers in an extensive landscape such as  moorland  to graze different areas without the need for fences, each ewe remaining on her particular area. Lambs usually learn their heft from their mothers. (From Wikipedia's listing under Sheep Husbandry.) Sheep in their heft Eden Arts interviewed people in a particular grazing land to talk about their flock hefting.  Through the interviews it becomes clear that the people being interviewed also experience that instinct to stay close to home.  Should you want to see all 15 minutes of the video (I found the scenery well worth th

It was about a year ago that I started my first False Creek Cowl .  The plan then was to knit it in a lovely chunky maroon Cascade yarn.  The pattern included a very simple lace pattern, and I tried to follow the chart in class like we were instructed to do.  But after three hours in class where nearly everyone else finished, I was merely one-third through the project.  I wrote about that sad story here . At home that yarn and I tried it work together, but to no avail, we were doomed, or so it seemed.  So the needles, pattern and yarn were all put away until we could figure out a way to play nice together.  In fact it was so well stored that it took me over an hour of searching to find it recently.  But find it I did about three weeks ago.  Apparently I had high hopes to make False Creek because no less than 3 more skeins of chunky yarn showed up in the house.  (I so wish yarn would quit sneaking into my stash.) So it came to be that I gave False Creek another try.  It is hard to s

Yesterday after less than 48 hours in the hospital M took her parents home with her. She lives in cold country so it was necessary for her to bundle up for the ride. Luckily this sleepy little one didn't actually drive home Admittedly I am bias, but isn't she about as adorable as she can be? The hand knit sweater, of course, immediately (ok second or third glance) got my attention. It was not one I had made, but then I recognized the little hood with the pom pom on top. It certainly looks like one my Mother makes. This sweater was first written about in this blog here . Last night during a Facetime discussion I could verify that indeed this was a sweater made by the great grandmother, someone I call Mom.  Here's a photo so you can more completely see how it looks. M's is in pink rather than this cream colour, however. Mom's hooded sweater This pattern is a favorite of my Mom's; many of her great-grandchildren have received one and now so has M.  Mom h

Variegated yarn calls to me all the time.  I love the way the different colours blend together on the skein or hank.  They always look so good and then you knit with it and things can turn ugly. I've talked about variegated yarn pooling before here ; it is one of the major drawbacks of variegated yarn.  Here's a couple of pooling variegated yarns that are tolerable although they strike me as less than ideal. Pooling on the front doesn't match well around the sleeves Pooling in the upper half doesn't match the lower half But pooling isn't the only concern when using variegated yarn.   For instance, if one is knitting a pair of socks with variegated yarn, should you or should you not make sure they match by starting the second sock at the same spot within the variegation?  (I know these are earth-shaking dilemmas.) There was a discussion on Knitting Paradise about this specific topic recently.  It seemed equally divided when it came to socks or m

Sometimes life changes can happen in an instant, at others there's plenty of advance notice to prepare, but even then the change can still create quite an impact. Here's the person responsible for the most recent change to all those in her extended family. Meet Miss M.  That's how we'll refer to her here in this very public blog.  (A sincere THANK YOU to Grandpa Schaffer for all these new baby photos): M as she'll be known on this blog So it was on Saturday, November 16, 2013 at 6:14 pm (Central Time) the lives of many people changed. A couple became parents, their parents became grandparents, the couple's brothers became uncles, aunts and uncles of the parents/grandparents become great aunts and uncles and so on. In that instant so many new roles came to be for so many people. I am the oldest of my generation, her uncle is oldest of his and now M will be the oldest of her generation. It is a story as old as time itself, but when it is your time

Movember meet Wovember , a site that exits during the month of November to help those who read it better understand wool, its history, harvesting, processing, uses and more.  It's written by three authors, Kate Davies, Felicity Ford and Tom van Deijnen, all who know what they are talking about when it comes to raising sheep, what it takes to process wool and how to use it. Here's how the organizers describe it: "Wovember is about showing our collective appreciation of wool by wearing as much of this fabulous fibre as possible, and by celebrating its unique qualities in stories and pictures throughout the month of November. Through our enthusiasm and creativity we can raise awareness of what makes wool different, and jointly create a force for wool appreciation strong enough to effect changes in how garments and textiles are described and marketed." I haven't yet had a chance to read everything posted, but the segment called "Sounds of Wool" is

Tena and I headed out to Knit City  on Sunday, Oct 26.  (If it sounds somewhat familiar it is because I wrote here about it last year.)  This was only the second annual event which is meant to showcase local yarn and fiber shops as well as related woolly wears.  Here's a few photos to give you a flavour of the scene. One of the four aisles Knitting classes on the stage Exotic yarns, this one is 50% silk and 50% camel It seems we knew so many people this year that it took us much, much longer to make our way through the vendors, like over 2.5 hours.  First there were Alex and Emily from Tin Can Knits . Yes, here's three Antler Sweaters, Tena, Alexa and Emily  Then we moved to Aruna Neela 's booth; she's the Debbie Bliss Baby Blanket Competition Winner.  We stood and talked for some time about that lovely vest she was wearing, winning the competition and my blog.  She even gave me a shout-out on her Facebook page . Of course I h

So it did happen on Friday evening, November 1.  As a part of the Slow TV movement in Norway, nearly 13 hours of television focused on the International Back to Back Wool Challenge.  This is four more hours than originally planned because, well, the Norwegian team did not get anywhere near breaking the Guinness record for completing the sheep to sweater competition.  At 8.35 am on Saturday morning November 1, after eight hours and 33 minutes of nonstop spinning and knitting, the knitting team presented their finished sweater. (The Australian team they were trying to beat managed to complete the feat in four hours and 51 minutes.)   But the program did garner 1.3 million views, which is said to be about one-third of the Norwegian population.  (I can't believe one-third of the population tuned in.  That percentage seems unimaginable for the North American audience[s].) The 2013 Norwegian team with the completed sweater It is easy to see that the finished product, the off-white