2012 The Year of the Norwegian Knitted Christmas Ball

Last year this time I was crocheting reindeer stockings for Katherine and Robert. This year, thanks to Arne and Carlos, I and thousands of other people around the world are knitting Norwegian Christmas balls for the holiday season. This green one on the left was knitted by my friend, Jeri. I just got started on my first one, here in red and white. So far, it is fun and easy. Arne says he can knit two or three in one day, and I believe it. I calculate I am 20% done with mine and it only took me one hour. I encourage you to follow the link to Arne and Carlos' website, and especially to watch their two short videos. Oh my gosh, they are hilarious! And as cute as they could be!

Candra's Apron

I finally finished the red and white egg beater apron for my friend and nurse colleague, Candra! This apron has been on my UFO list for a year! Candra helped me start it last summer (2011)and we had hoped to finish it before Thanksgiving, so she could use it to cook Thanksgiving dinner for her family. But we both started school (RN-to-BS programs) and each had our nose to the grindstone for the entire year. I just got my first real break from school, and really enjoyed getting this project back out again. Candra, in addition to being beautiful and smart and an awesome oncology nurse, is a fabulous cook and home maker, so this apron is perfect for her! She makes the best apple pies in the state of California!

Vexillo Baby Blanket for Baby Karen

I finally finished the knitted baby blanket I've been working on for my cousins, Rodger and Leslea's first grandchild, Karen. The rocking chair the blanket is draped over is the one I bought when my daughter, Katherine, was born. The blanket is simple and fun to knit, using self-striping sock yarn. The pattern is called Vexillo and is available free from Berroco.

This is a photo of the wrong side so you can see the seaming. The seaming wasn't as fun as the knitting, but once I got into it, I didn't mind it all that much. I had slipped the first stitch in each row of knitting as if to purl with the yarn in front. This left a nice, clear edge and made the seaming pretty easy.

And this is baby Karen on the day she was born in April.

Fickle Nickel Quilts in a Weekend

My apologizes for the long break in posting!  I'm back in school studying for my Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and have been very focused on my studies.  I took a much needed break this past weekend and visited my daughter in Texas. In a marathon sewing session over the three days, we each pieced a quilt top using Fickel Nickel Quilt kits we had purchased at the Houston International Quilt Festival last November. These kits use one yard each of five different fabrics.  The instructions are super easy and would be a good first project for some new to quilting. 

Here is a photo of mine a little closer.  It looks like I may have held the wrong side towards the camera....oops!

Back from my Orenburg knitting class

 

I returned this week from the 2 day Orenburg lace knitting class with Galina Khmeleva at the Lace Museum in Sunnyvale, California.  I had a wonderful time and learned more than I thought possible in two days!

I can't wait to tell you all about it, but first a report on my lace shawl from Russia that I took for Galina to look at.  The shawl I received as a gift while living in Russia in 1975 is the one on the right in the photo above.  Next to it on the left is a very fine Orenburg shawl that I purchased from Galina at the class.  Galina's assessment of my shawl is that it is Russian made by a skilled knitter but was not made in Orenburg.  The main telling factor is the number of holes in each edge "tooth".  Orenburg shawls have a distinctive pattern of 5 holes on each side of each edge tooth.  My shawl has six holes on each side of each tooth.  That is the main difference.  Another difference is that the yarn used to knit my shawl appears to be machine spun, whereas all Orenburg shawls are knit from handspun yarn from goats that live only in Orenburg that is plied with a little bit of fine silk for strength and durability. Galina thinks my shawl is goat fiber machine spun with viscous rather than silk.  So, I have a very nice Russian shawl, but it is not an authentic Orenburg.  As Galina said, "Your shawl never spent the night in Orenburg."  Happily, I learned how to mend a couple of places where holes have worn in the pattern, and I learned how to wash and block my shawl.

And now for some photos of the class and our work:

 

 

We knit these little lace samplers to practice the motifs found in Orenburg knitting.  Each pattern has a name.  Here you can see mouseprints. The yarn Galina gave us to us is Jagar spun 50% wool and 50% silk.

 

My first little lace sampler piece in which I practiced mouseprints and a knit-off bind off technique.  Also shown here is a stainless steel knitting needle from Orenburg (Orenburg is a steel producing region) and two little bobbins with more wool/silk yarn.

 

More bobbins of yarn.

A map of Russia.  Orenburg is situated at the base of the Ural Mountains in central Russia, just north of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, both in Central Asia on the old silk route.  Now that Uzbekistan is a separate country, Orenburg has lost its source of fine silk.

Here we learned how to block a little lace shawl sampler.

 

And here is my simple little sample shawl that I knit in fingering weight yarn.  I started it the week before class, using instructions from one of Galina's books.  I grafted the final corner (the upper left) with a little help from Galina in class.  Then I wove in the ends and blocked it at home.  Not bad, don't you think?  Now that I understand the construction of the shawl, it seems definitely within the realm of possibilities for me to eventually knit a lace weight Orenburg style shawl, if I am persistent and practice enough.  

Okay, here are the rest of the photos:

 

 

Hand made bobbin lace from linen (flax) grown and handspun in Orenburg.

My second attempt at lace weight Orenburg motifs.  I'm getting the motifs reasonably well, but my tension is uneven and the edges are abysmal.  Much practicing is needed to master working with fine lace weight yarn!

 

More photos of the shawl I bought.

Fetching Cabled Fingerless Mitts and Reversible Scart

I finished my reversible cabled scarf to go with my fingerless mitts. The scarf is narrow and relatively short, which makes it a bit dressy, which I like.   It has still been cold enough in the early morning that I have been able to wear them driving to work at 6 am.  And they will certainly keep me warm when I go to my workshop in Fort Collins, Colorado next month.

And I am sooooo excited to go to my Orenburg lace knitting class with Galina Khmeleva next week!  I'll post about it while I am there.