From Blending Board to Fiber Frolic

During introductions at a recent GLASG meeting, I blurted out that my special skill is spending my paycheck on fibers and tools.  I was not surprised to see how many other members agreed that this is high on their skill inventories.  I think most of us fiber fanatics love the tactile and visual sensations we get from our stashes and our equipment.  Fortunately, I haven't been bitten by the spindle spinning bug, but I know many spinners who have more spindles than they will ever use, just because they are drawn by the beauty of the wood or the craftsmanship of the artist.  For Lent this year, I am giving up bacon and guilt over my shopping habits.  I think doing both will make me a better and healthier person.

My friend Gail from Weaver's Cupboard and I went to the February meeting of the Greater Los Angeles Spinners Guild (GLASG), where Gwen Powell gave a seminar on using the blending board and woolen spinning.    Gwen has a Certificate of Excellence in Handspinning from the HGA and teaches spinning, weaving, crochet, and dyeing.  She was instrumental in bringing back the garneting board from obscurity under the friendlier name "blending board."   She worked with Clemes & Clemes on the design and the result is a board created with the fiber know-how of a master spinner and the craftsmanship of a major fiber tool maker.  After seeing some of their boards in action I find them tempting but for the time being, I'm sticking with my less beautiful but fully functional handmade board.

Gwen demonstrated how to create a batt and then pull off several nearly identical striped rolags.  She also showed how to add inclusions (little bits of stuff to add interest) to the batt. Finally, she showed how easily the rolags could be spun into woolen using a long draw technique.

Easy for her, that is.  She has become so expert at using her blending board that she had it loaded with fiber and created rolags in just a minute or two.

It took me about 20 minutes to get these rolags off my blending board.  I clearly have some issues with consistency.  We used some 1/4" dowels to wrap the rolags around - perhaps a large dowel would help.

I also put some inclusions in the purple/blue set, which mostly fell out later.  But it was a lot of fun and I'm going to enjoy using this tool now that I have some clues about what can be done with it.

Yesterday, I had a few minutes to spin the rolags.  I really tried to stick with the long-draw woolen technique Gwen showed, but I struggled.  I think part (but not all) of the problem was the consistency of my rolags.  Some parts drafted easily.  Other parts required tugging to get any fibers out.  And I kept catching myself reverting to my worsted style.  Since my singles were so inconsistent, I decided to Navajo ply without regard to color to get a very chaotic yarn.  I love how the colors turned out.  Wonder what I can do with 18 yards of chaos?

Gwen will be giving a full workshop for my Saturday Spinners group in a couple of months and I'm really looking forward to learning more from her.


One of my local guild's members sent out an email through the grapevine a couple of weeks ago about selling her Pat Green Triple Picker.  Lucky for me, I check my email obsessively and was the first to respond to her message.  As much as I like my Kaydessa box picker, I can prepare only a few ounces of fiber in an hour.  While the Pat Green can go through several POUNDS of fiber in an hour.   You can get an idea of its size from this photo -- the picker is sitting on a porch swing that seats two adults.  I'm still keeping the Kaydessa -- it can go to workshops with me, but the Pat Green will be my go-to tool.

This picker needs a little attention -- it's a bit rusty and the wood needs some care, but for the price, I couldn't have been happier.  A little elbow grease and it will be ready to go.   And just in time.  At the GLASG meeting, I won a bag full of unwashed alpaca.  Looked pretty horrible, but after washing, it's a beautiful light fawn color.  It was already a bit matted and washing matted it a little more, so it's going to need a ride through the picker before it can be carded.

Incidentally, I learned this last week:

                    (HOT CAR) + (UNWASHED ALPACA) X (2 DAYS) = (INSTANT NAUSEA)

Life is full of unexpected lessons.

Ever have one of those days where you couldn't do anything right?  Friday I took another machine knitting class at Newton's Yarn Country.  This session was on punch lace (aka thread lace) and using the lace carriage.

For the life of me, I couldn't even remember how to cast on.  Had to sneak a peak at my instruction book because I wasn't going to admit it.  And still had to ask for help.  And at one critical point, I ran the carriage over the bed without adding a necessary thread and got to learn how to manually pick up and re-knit dropped stitches.

Unfortunately, I didn't think to have Newton's check out my lace carriage in advance.  It was skipping stitches and knitting some in unintended places, so I left it to get some TLC.    The punch lace, though, was pretty easy to do and I also learned a new binding off technique.  Here I'm in the process of binding off a swatch.

I'm not sure what I would use it for, but this technique makes an interesting textured fabric with the heavy yarn overlaid by a lightweight thread.

This is the purl side of the fabric.  You can see where the dark thread is is not caught consistently.  Once we added more weight to the fabric, the stitches became more consistent.Still pretty ugly, though.

I read somewhere that there really isn't a right or wrong side in punch lace - you choose based on what's pleasing to your eye - but I don't think there's any question here that this is the wrong side.










And this is the knit side.  Still don't like the overall pattern, but I like the look of the lacy thread over the heavier yarn.  We used a dark thread over a medium toned yarn to get some contrast between the two.  I think this would look interesting (in the right pattern) with a metallic thread or perhaps a different tone of the same color.

 Close-up, you can see how the yarn and thread are knitted together.





























I also learned to do a hem with a picot edge.  I think it makes a really pretty border.

Saturday was the Griffin Dyeworks  Fiber Frolic.  This is an annual (I think) event held in Monrovia, where they offer a number of classes, have a small vendor hall, and a spinning circle.   The Griffin people were super friendly and made it a fun day.

My morning class was on fiber blending with Micki Lawrence from Funhouse Fibers. Micki sells her handspun yarn and dyed roving on her site.   I already knew Micki a little from GLASG, and expected her to lead a lively and fun class.  She did not disappoint.  Even though she was a last minute replacement for the original teacher, she was well-prepared and  I would take another class with her anytime.  

Using just the three primary colors (red, yellow, and blue) and a pair of hand carders, we worked on creating a color wheel by blending different proportions of the colors. Then created tints by adding white to each color, and shades by adding black.    Aha moment for me.  I have to admit I'm intimidated by color theory.  I know what pleases me and I know what I definitely don't like.  I tend to stick to a few "safe" color choices.  But I finally got it that by blending a color that I don't particularly like with a different color, I can create the illusion of an altogether different color.   And I really like the texture created by combining two colors. 

Micki also demonstrated using a DIY hackle to blend color.  Although we ran out of time and didn't get to play with them, she had brought along enough of her handmade hackles for each of us to use, and we were able to buy them.  These are made by attaching some plastic hairpicks to a board.  Simple.  But having drilled through plastic in the past, visions of massive hand injuries made me take no time to decide to buy one.  I'm pretty sure nearly everyone in the class bought one as well. 

Speaking of buying things, there were shopping opportunities here.  Ruth from the Dizzy Ewe was there with piles of her gorgeous fibers. I purchased some lovely cream-colored Polwarth top from her for my afternoon class.

One of the vendors was selling gently used books and I found a copy of Yarns to Dye For.   It explains how to achieve different patterning effects such as stripes and faux fairisle in hand-dyed yarns.   Having done a fair amount of dyeing using different techniques, I think book is excellent for the crafter who doesn't want to become an expert dyer or invest in expensive equipment, but who still wants to control where color goes in the yarn.  Instructions are very clear and uncomplicated. Think my next solo dyeing project will be "watermelon" stripes. 

At the Griffin Dyeworks tables, I bought a small bag of cochineal and made myself walk away. ( It's now triple-bagged and in my studio.)  Fifteen minutes later, when a friend showed me a handheld tapestry loom she had bought, I was forced to go back for another look.  And made a trip to my car with:

Not one, but two tapestry looms made by Jim Hokett of Hokett Would Works. Yes, Would.  The first time I saw the name, I thought it was a typo but it  turns out to be a pretty clever play on words.  The larger loom is 12:"x16" and is made of purple heart and padauk.  The smaller one is 7"x8" and is made of pecana (sic) negra and coyote wood.  I wish I could take better photos because this one does not do justice to the lovely wood.  Jim Hokett doesn't have his own website but his tools are sold by several fiber companies, including  Griffin Dyeworks.




These looms are warped by running a thread across the length, through the first notch, and back through the second one.  I'm told that the finished product can be removed from the loom by just pushing the warp threads up the notches.   Can't picture how that would work if there's enough tension on the warp but guess I'll just have to see.

Here you can see the loom partially warped.  Below are sections of the front showing threads alternately going into or coming out of each slot, and the back, showing how the threads are wrapped around every other peg.

Then I found this tiny tool called a barb beater.  It's just 1"x2.5" - a perfect size for working with small areas on one of these handheld looms.  Also made by Jim Hokett.

Finally, I fell for this beautiful nostepinne made of mahogany and poplar.  This is used for winding yarn into a ball.  Who could resist this lovely tool?  I don't know who made this one.

 My afternoon class was on dust dyeing, taught by Elena Dent.  I love, love, love any form of dyeing.  And Elena  made it very simple.  She had a dozen or so different salt shakers filled with Cushings dyes cut with cornstarch and a pair of commercial steam table pans filled with hot (not boiling) water simmering on the stove.  We added some vinegar to the water, put in a piece or two of fiber, and started sprinkling them with the dye powders.

Elena was knowledgeable and informative, and did a good job taking the mystery out of the process for the class.  Only thing I would change is to have a monitor to make sure people took turns nicely.  The pans were large enough for two people at a time to share one.  Most of my classmates were considerate, but we had one person who shoved her way in front, and filled one pan with her fibers.  Then took that batch out and started another before anyone else had a turn.  At one point she had one entire pan filled along with half of the other while the rest of us waited our turns.  And of course we were all too polite to say anything to her.  Maybe drawing numbers would have helped.  But I don't think anyone let this ruin the class for them, and I would definitely take another class from Elena.

Some people mixed the colors in the pan and ended up with fairly monochromatic results. One of the women had some silk scarves that she slowly dipped in the pan repeatedly, and ended up with some lovely ombre effects.   I wanted multi-hued fibers, so I sprinkled several different colors on my roving.   I tried not to agitate the water, so the colors would pretty much stay where sprinkled.  This is the first time I've done dyeing where the result was pretty close to what I was trying for.

Despite the care we took, somewhere in the process I managed to felt the fibers a little.  But I'm going to spin this if I have to card it again!  I'm so curious to see what the colors do when spun.


All in all, it was a great day and I look forward to going again.

Time Flies When You're Knitting

Happy St. Distaff's Day!

Can't believe a over a month has gone by without posting.  It certainly isn't because I haven't been having fibery fun.

There have been some excellent distractions.   Beautiful sunsets like this one...

that have left me standing on the porch with mouth agape just staring at the beautiful colors on several occasions.

And some irresistible cuteness...



This is my little Tallulah who is humiliated on a regular basis by being made to don costumes when we're making cards for all the major holidays (and a few minor ones).  And by having to wear a zebra-striped jacket on cold days.  Egregious use of dog picture, but but I can rationalize it by admitting that I'm saving her hair trimmings to spin. She's 2 1/2 years old and I already have at least half an ounce of her hair. (!)

And last, but not least, getting to spend quality time with extended family and friends over the holidays.  Who would not appreciate having their photos in my blog, so I will abstain.

I still found time to work on some projects.  In early December, I took my first machine knitting class at Newton's Yarn Country.  The Studio 360K I received from a friend was all cleaned with a new sponge bar, and worked like a charm.  The project for the first class was a small scarf -- techniques learned include e-wrap cast-on, fair isle knitting using the 24-stitch punch cards, back-stitch cast-off, and mattress stitch seams.  The scarf fabric came off the loom all rolled up a tube, then we steamed it (relatively) flat.  I'm in the process of stitching the two long edges together using mattress stitch, but the purple color is so dark it's a struggle to see what I'm doing.  So finishing the seam and adding the fringe is on hold until I get myself under a good lamp with a magnifying glass.

If you look closely, you can see a couple of flaws in the pattern knitting, but since this was more for the training than for the finished object, I didn't go back and correct them.  Somewhere I read that an artist should always include at least one small error in his art to prove his humility to God.  I've decided to be grateful that I probably won't ever be in a position to lack humility.

But right after the lesson I went home feeling a little too full of myself and ready to create a larger, more complex scarf.  Wrong!  I succeeded in setting up the machine properly and that's about it.  I could not do anything right.  Kept dropping stitches, forgetting to change a setting and not getting the pattern where I wanted it, getting yarns caught on the stand, carriage jams, you name it.  After about the third time I confidently "knitted" across a row and had the entire project come off the machine, I told myself to step away from the machine and put it away until after Christmas.

Next time I got out the machine, it was a different experience.  I got out the instruction book and  followed it in excruciating detail.  I think a lot of the problem I had earlier was because I was just a little too excited about what I had learned and I was forgetting to flip a lever here, check my tension there.  Things new knitters simply have to make routine.  I practiced the easy stuff first -  casting on, plain knitting, changing yarn colors... 

This is just a simple striped scarf in my school colors -- it knitted up easily and very fast -- a matter of under an hour even with all the color changes.  Will probably take me longer to stitch the back seam and do fringe than the knitting took.

Then I switched to Fair Isle.  By following the instructions one step at a time, I did get this scarf fabric finished.  I don't much like the pattern - something about the solid red parts are just visually disturbing to me.  But the knitting still had some major errors -- a few spots where the white yarn got picked up in the knitting where it didn't belong, and one big spot where I dropped stitches without realizing it and had to darn by hand later.  

You can see in this photo how obvious the error is, and a little bit of my clumsy darning.  By the time I was learning to knit and sew, darning was already a lost art, so I completely bluffed my way through this one.

And in the photo below, you can see how long some of the floats were  - on some patterns the floats can be nearly the width of the whole fabric, so learning to control these is important.

I tried a couple more Fair Isle patterns - thought this one would be really fun for my greatnieces -- but ran into the problem with misplaced stitches.  Frustrated, I set aside the Fair Isle until I could show the problems to my teachers at Newton's.  I learned in my second lesson that if I pull the first stitch on each row forward, it helps to keep the yarn that should be floating from getting into the pattern by accident.  I also learned that I need to pay more attention to keeping my weights closer to the top of the knitting.  

I needed to do something totally different.   I've been intrigued by the mesh yarn used to make ruffly scarves and wanted to play with some.  Since I couldn't visualize how to hand-knit this, I decided to try it on the knitting machine.  After a few false starts, I cast on 20 stitches, and ran a row of the mesh across every six rows. 

It took a bit of getting used to looping the mesh over the needles.  If you don't maintain tension on it, the loops just pop right off the needles.  I ended up pulling down on the mesh with one hand while moving the needles out and hooking the mesh over them with the other.  It helps to be ambidextrous when you have to switch directions every other row.

This is what the scarf looks like on the "front" between rows of the novelty yarn.  Since the mesh ranges from a very pale shade to a dark one, I figured a mid-range would be suitable.  You can't even see it through the mesh.  One thing I didn't count on, but should have, is that the scarf would have a solid back. 

Here's what the back looks like.  Although I like the extra weight the yarn gives the scarf, this is going to look junky if it flips over.  So I'm going to stitch the edges together to make a tube completely surrounded by the mesh.

I have another skein of the mesh, and think next time I will try a much loose tension.  Would like the scarf to be a little less weighty and would also like it to be a bit longer than the first one.  


  

Had my second lesson last Saturday, and it was SO much fun.  First, we talked about my "issues" and Helen gave me some really good pointers for dealing with them.  Since then, knock wood, the only problems I'm having happen when I get careless and don't check my settings.  In the second lesson, I learned a weaving cast-on technique, and learned to decrease rows by moving stitches from one needle to the next and taking the unused needles out of action.  Got a little more practice with the Fair Isle technique, and didn't have a single problem with it. Huzzah!  At the end of the lesson, I had a completely finished little infant's cap.  This technique would actually make wonderful caps for chemo patients -- because of the way it's folded and the seam is mattress-stitched, there is no edge inside to irritate tender skin.  I'd like to get some really soft yarns to make more of these.


































My Studio MK-70 was all repaired, cleaned, and ready to come home.  It is such a cool looking machine, I'm not sure I would care if it didn't knit worth a darn.  But it does.  Although I'm taking my lessons on the Studio 360K and plan on sticking with it until I'm comfortable with all its bells and whistles, I couldn't resist trying out the MK-70.  This one also is capable of Fair Isle, but the cards are 18-stitch, so cannot be interchanged with the 360K cards.  I have just the five cards that came with the machine, one of which is not intended for Fair Isle knitting.  Here are the four patterns I do have:

Three geometrics...  I like the top one, am so-so about the middle, and really dislike the bottom one.  And one that looks like heart-shaped flowers.  Sorry - my photo is a bit blurred -- but I really like this pattern. 

I 'd really like to find more18-stitch pattern cards or at least some  blank cards to someday make my own.  You'd think that the dozens of 24-stitch cards I have would keep me busy with the 360K, but the MK-70 can knit with a bulkier yarn and I would like to have the versatility.

But for now, MK-70 is back in her box, waiting patiently while I attempt to master the 360K.  This month I'm concentrating on switching from Fair Isle to plain stitching and trying to get a handle on visualizing how the pattern on a card will look knitted up.  I've already had a couple of surprises.  And this is becoming so much fun!  

Some Catching Up

So in my last post, I ran out of time to talk about all the fun I've been having the last month or so.

Received a shipment of knitting machine equipment for the Studio 360 knitting machine:  ribber, intarsia carriage, automatic linker, rib transfer carriage, 4 color changer, garter stitch transfer bar, lace carriage, shadow lace transfer tool, seven sets of punchcards and some blank ones, a few assorted books, and a punch machine.  I have no idea how to use most of these things but hopefully the classes  I have scheduled with Newton's will educate me.

The PM-10 punch machine is really cool, and if I ever get to the point that I'm ready to punch my own design cards, will sure make it faster than using the little punch tool I already had.  Rather than trying to explain it here, I found a YouTube video that shows exactly how it works.





Spent one Sunday taking a lesson from a local spinning teacher, Ruth, a.k.a., the Dizzy Ewe.  My friend Susan made the arrangements and we held it at my house (hooray - I didn't have to drive anywhere!).  There were just five students plus Ruth, and we had a great day.  Ruth offers several different classes on different spinning techinques, dyeing, carding, and combing.  She put together a custom workshop for us on selecting fleece, several methods of preparing it for spinning, and a little bit of spinning technique.

After the Dorset Debacle, I needed the instruction.  Ruth brought six raw fleeces (or parts thereof) and we learned the etiquette of evaluating a fleece at a show, how to look for breaks or canary stains, and how to divide the fleece into locks or clumps for washing. 

Washed CVM Locks

We then moved on to actually washing some of each fleece - either by the lock or in clumps.  We started with HOT water with just a few drops of Dawn dishwashing liquid.  For the locks, we held each individual lock by the tip, swished in the water a few times, took hold of the other end, and swished again, then laid on a rack to dry.  I was working with some CVM (California Variegated Mutant) fleece. Rather than going into breed characteristics here, since I would only be quoting others and not speaking from my own knowledge, I'm linking each breed name with a website that tells a bit about it.

I learned that I do not have the patience to wash a lock at a time and will opt for the clump method in future.  For this, we spread a smallish clump of fiber as evenly as possible in a thin layer in the lingerie bag, placed it on a rack, and set the whole thing in the sink or a tub.  Then walked away.  No poking, not swishing, no wringing.  Nothing.  About 20-30 minutes later, we lifted the rack out of the water and let it drain.  Again, no handling the fiber!  Repeated this until the water in the sink was clear, then gave a final bath in HOT water with a dash of vinegar added.  Then we spun the bag in a salad spinner to remove excess water and laid it out to dry in the sun. 

Unwashed CVM Clumps

Each of us worked at her own pace, and with so few students, Ruth was able to answer questions, lend a hand, and share information as we worked.  I have to confess that I did not get a lot done other than the washed locks because I was so busy seeing what everyone else was up to.

After lunch, we learned about combing and carding fleece.  I'm already a so-so carder, but I've never used woolcombs.  I bought a set of  used single pitch Viking combs a d few months ago and never found the time to try them out. Found out I LOVE combing wool.  Even with the fear of skewering myself on those lethal looking tines.

Ruth provided some washed  CVM/Wensleydale X fleece.  I spun up the combed fiber before I thought about taking pictures, but the result was just lovely.  This was also the first long-wool fiber I've spun and it was so much fun -- it pretty much drafted itself and I've never spun anything so fine before.  I didn't get around to spinning the carded fiber -- it came off the cards in puffy clouds and I think it will make a lovely woolen if I can get over my worsted habit.

Carded CVM/Wensleydale X

Spinning Combed Fiber

A few other breeds of wool we discussed (ok, fondled) were Mohair (our only non-sheep fiber), Shetland, Texel, Navajo Churro, and Romney.  We received samples of each type in varying states of washedness.  Ruth also gave us each a large portion of pin-drafted CVM/Romeldale. 

Mohair

Romney Locks

Navajo Churro

Shetland

CVM/Romeldale

Texel

So we had a wonderful day, packed with information and filled with laughter. And soaked up enough lanolin from the raw wool that I didn't need to use hand lotion for the next two weeks.  I have at least a day's worth of washing and some serious spinning to do now.  Oh, and last weekend I got rid of the demolished Dorset fleece without the least bit of compunction.

By the way, fleece comes with all manner of unsavory biological matter in the raw state and if you're squeamish, you may want to stick to already prepared roving and top.  But you're going to miss half the fun that way.  If you do process fleece at home, be aware that any sink you use needs to be thoroughly disinfected afterward.  And please don't use any containers or tools you use for processing fleece for cooking afterward.  Ever.  You might also want to make sure your tetanus booster is up to date.   

In other spinning news, I want to give credit to the HansenCraft folks for excellent customer service.  I was spinning at my class Wednesday night when my miniSpinner suddenly stopped turning.  After a few minutes of panic over potential motor failure, we figured out that the join in my drive band had come apart.  Of course I had to post immediately on the Ravelry group asking what I might have done to break the band.  By the time class was over, Kevin had replied that the join was probably defective and offering to send me a new band gratis.  Got notification last night that it has already been mailed.  Now that's customer service!

In the bonehead department...  I signed up for a class at Newton's to take place today (November 30).  Put it on my iPhone calendar, but the entry disappeared.  This is not the first time I've had this happen and I learned recently that it's a common problem that's supposed to be solved by updating the device OS, which I did just last week.  But that's beside the point. 

So I THOUGHT I remembered signing up for Friday, November 30, and emailed Newton's a few weeks ago to check.  They confirmed Friday, November 30.  I proceeded to enter the appointment on my desktop calendar for Saturday, December 1.  And have looked at it several times since wondering why I thought I was scheduled for Saturday, since I had wanted to take the Friday class.  And not thinking to check my email.  Because it was on my calendar and therefore it couldn't be wrong. 

Just called Newton's a few minutes ago to make sure my Studio 360 is all ready for me to work on (it is) and was asked why I wasn't in class.  Hunh?!  Yes, I was supposed to go today and I have been blissfully ignorant of the fact.  They were very nice about it and rescheduled me for another class in mid-December.

But I also got some good news from Newton's.  A piece of the plastic needle bed for the MK-70 (this machine has no spongebar and the needles are instead supported by plastic) was broken when I took it in to be checked out.   They were able to find a replacement part so the machine can be fixed! 

Learning to Knit on a Machine

Well, it took a few days to get my oomph back after Convergence.  Spent a few evenings studying books on machine knitting and put my new machine together.  It's a basic, entry-level knitter and I'm looking foward to making lots of projects on it -- especially blanks for space-dyeing yarns.

I quickly realized that I would need to do something about a table before I could use the machine.  It has to be bolted on to a table.   Turns out I don't have a table sturdy enough for a knitting machine that can accommodate the clamps.  I don't have room for another piece of furniture in my house, so I did some research on knitting machine stands and my friend Holly and I made a trip to Newton's Yarn Country on Saturday.

They were having one of their parking lot sales (yee-haw!) and as usual they were very busy.  But that didn't stop "Mrs. Newton's" from taking a few minutes to talk with me about tables and accessories.  And "Mr. Newton's" stopped pulling yarn out of the warehouse to look for a stand for me.  How pathetic is it that as many times as I've been to their store, I haven't learned their names?

Anyway, I  was quite impressed that they had two choices of stands in stock, and that they didn't try to sell me the more expensive one.  We talked for a few minutes about my machine and plans for using it, and they suggested that the costlier one would be overkill, and I think they were right.  Having done my homework, I knew the lowest price I would pay if I bought online, and I actually spent about $30 less, even adding in the tax.

As I was looking around the shop, I noticed a couple of cases near the knitting machines.  Turned out they use rifle cases, same as Nancy Roberts recommended.  They sell them at their cost (less than I would have paid buying it direct) so I got a very fair price on a case. 

Of course, I couldn't visit Newton's on a sale day and not check out the yarns.  So we bundled the new stand, rifle case, and a couple of garbage bags of yarn suitable for machine knitting into the car.  And I think I may have Holly hooked on fiber arts because she came home with a few cones of yarn, too!

Soon as I got home I had to check out the case.  Everything fits just right and the foam in the case even keeps all the small stuff from moving around.  Now I need to figure out how to embellish it so it's clear that it does not contain firearms.  As much as I'm in favor of keeping my constitutional rights,  I don't need anybody thinking I'm carrying.

 
Then I put together the stand (instructions were excellent and easy to follow) and got the machine clamped on.  Funny that there was no indication of how the machine should be oriented on the stand.  I looked all over the internet and found zip.  Guess you're just supposed to know what the purpose of the arm thingies is.  (Turns out they're for other machines that have different case configurations.  All I needed was a simple solid surface to clamp to.  I was surprised at how sturdy the stand turned out to be -- It doesn't wobble a bit.  And it will be so easy to transport it to classes, etc.

I was about to spend a few hours over the weekend getting better acquainted with the machine.  So far it's been quite easy to follow the instructions in the basic guide to the machine.  Learned a little about using the transfer and tappet tools, and made a small pile of samples using different techniques.  Here goes  (photos show front of fabric on left, back on right):

Pile of Samples

Color Changes

Tuck Stitch

More Tuck Stitch with Loose Gauge

Tuck Stitch in Colors

Tuck Stitch in Colors, Changing Yarn in Different Rows

Slip Stitch - Hard to See Diagonal Effect

I Think This Was the Start of Lace Stitch

Plating, Using Every Other Needle, Variations in Gauge

Plating, Using Every Needle

I had a ball learning about these techniques. It's a bit like driving a car, where you have to keep track of several things going on at once.  Make sure your inactive yarns are out of the way, check your active yarn tension, be sure the carriage goes past all the live needles on each pass, on and on.  Just when you're confident that you've got a handle on it, you make a pass and knit your work right off the machine.  But that's why we have classes and books to help us learn, right?

Speaking of books, here are the ones I'm currently reading.  Bought the first two.  Borrowed the third but I'm going to buy it one of these days.

Mid-Gauge Basics + Much More.

This is the first book I bought and it expands on the techniques in the LK 150 manual.  Offers several simple but attractive projects for learning the ropes.  Can't wait to make the baby cardigan for my new great-niece!







 The Uncomplicated Knitting Machine.

This is a common-sense guide to machine knitting that takes the fear out of approaching a project.  Takes you through the phases of knitting different styles of sweaters from planning to execution to finishing.  Maybe the family will be getting sweaters this Christmas.

Hand Manipulated Stitches for Machine Knitters.

This book has a really clear explanation about how knitting machines work, various tools you might need, and the basics of casting on and binding off before it gets into the more exotic and decorative stitches.  It may be a while before I'm ready for more than just the basics, but the directions in this book are so clear and well illustrated that it's going to be a pleasure to use it.