Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival

The dark clouds and rain could not keep me away from the 24th annual Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival! The weather may have been dreary, but I had a wonderful time.  There were the usual vendors there, but a few new ones as well.

As usual, I started at the tent that sold festival t-shirts, sweatshirts, and totes.  I always leave my purse in the vehicle (money and checkbook in my pocket!) and get a new tote bag for the goodies I know that await inside.  I was surprised that this year's logo was a sheepdog!

The first animal barn had alpaca, primarily Angora goats, and a few sheep.  My favorite local Alpaca producer, Snowshoe Farm, was in there with exactly the yarn I was looking for:  Alpaca Sock.  It's 50% Alpaca, 30% Merino, 20% Nylon 3-ply yarn that comes in 500 yard skeins for only $26.  They had a stack of cards on the table that held washing and care instructions (which they said I could take as many as I wanted) that are perfect for slipping in the package with the finished product.

At this point, my youngest found me to let me know that the Sister's of St. Mary were selling cashmere goat kids.  As I had adopted 2 Angora goats in July, I thought that it might be fun to try for Cashgora.  I know I will use the resulting yarn!  To my surprise, they had a silver Cashmere named Sugah.  The price was right, so I bought her.  My husband just rolled his eyes.

Back to the yarn vendors.  I had brought a list with me of weight and yardage needed for projects I have lined up.  I found everything I was looking for.  The best deal of the day was a luxurious lace weight:  70% baby alpaca, 20% silk, 10% cashmere, 1300 yards for $32 from Nightingale Fibers.  I can't wait to work with it!!

We stopped to talk with both the sheep dog demonstrator and the fencing people.  Then it was back through one more vendor area, where I purchased several skeins of hand-dyed superwash Merino from Dyenamics Yarn (430 yds each).  I also bought 100% blue faced Leicester wool, dk weight, 700 yard hand-panted skeins from Jan Marek Raczkowski.

My tote-bag full, it was time to go back to the truck.  We stopped again at the tote-bag tent to speak with the event coordinator to get directions to pick up the goat.  Sugah laid down on my daughter's lap in the back seat, and off we went.

I had apprehensions about an unsecured goat in the back seat, but she was incredibly well behaved.  For most of the trip home, she just sat and chewed her cud.  We made a stop for a leg stretch, where Sugah wanted out too.  She relieved herself, then got back in with the rest of us.  She did not make any mess in the truck at all, but rather waited until she was out (she went again as soon as we got home.)

At 4 months, Sugah is bigger than my 5 month old Angora goats. There was a little bit of adjustment as she figured out where the water and hay were, and while the Angora's figured out who this newcomer was, but all quieted down within an hour.

My only disappointment with this year's show was there were no Angora rabbits there.  I was hoping to find a female to place in a hutch between the two males I currently have.  But I suppose if there HAD been a rabbit there, I would not have had the space to get Sugah.  Sometimes things just work out that way!

Combining Yarns

When crocheting winter gloves, I generally use sock yarn or fingering weight wool.  The gauge works out perfectly for the small to medium hand size.  Medium to large, however, requires either thicker weight or a larger hook. 

I had purchased some fingering weight 100% wool at the Yates Farm Yarn sale, but I found that it felt a bit too stiff and scratchy.  Next I tried combining it with lace weight alpaca to soften it up.  It worked like a charm.

By combining the two, I achieved the gauge I needed for medium/large gloves.  Both being natural fibers, the combination should provide the same if not more warmth and still be water resistant.  By using 1 strand of forest green wool with 1 strand of medium brown alpaca, the color combination works wonderfully.  The wool should also keep the alpaca from stretching out of shape.

It is important to learn the various properties associated with different fibers to make a combination that works.  If I had put the wool with cotton, for example, I would not trust that it would retain the water resistant properties.  I could have doubled up the wool, but that would not have softened the finished product at all. 

Combining yarns can be a fun way to get the properties you want out of your finished crochet project.  Trial and error may take some time, but it is well worth the education you will give yourself.

Yarn Hoarding

Yesterday, one of my family members came close to accusing me of being a hoarder of yarn.  "There are bags of it in almost every room in the house!"  she said.

I will concede she is partly correct.  The moving things around to change the purpose of a couple of different rooms in my house is far from complete.  However, this does not mean I am a hoarder.

By definition, a hoarder is someone who collects things then fails to use them or give them up.  Yes, I collect yarns for projects.  If she bothered to open the smaller bags, she would more than likely find a pattern in there with the yarn.  Sometimes I buy yarn in bulk at yarn sales, and these beloved skeins are in larger, clear plastic bags so I can see exactly what is in there.  I cannot be classified as a hoarder, however, as I use the yarns - constantly.  I also have given many skeins away.

I will confess to an iota of emotional appreciation of certain yarns that feel wonderful and are pleasing to the eye.  Yet those yarns are always made into something more, something that is either sold or given away.  Yarn is the main material of my craft - of course I have a stash of it!!

I think her complaint has more to do with the fact that I am not currently using wool.  Once a year, there is a yarn sale at a local farm where I stock up on all the different weights and colors of wool I plan to use.  It supports the local economy and saves me a ton of money!  Usually I have gone through over half of what I purchased by this time of year.  Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case this year.  Does this mean I'm a hoarder?  I think it means that once the weather turns, I'll be very busy!

No Dye Lot Yarns Have Come A Long Way

As I have yet to come across an accurate formula for determining how much yarn I will need, for afghans I usually choose a "no dye lot" yarn.  That way I can run to the store and get more if necessary.  Thankfully, these yarns have come a long way.

I have in my stash some no dye lot yarn from years ago that in no way matches the same company's color today, even though the label says it should.  This was the fear in the back of my head as I went to the store yesterday to get more yarn for the Herrschner's afghan.  My trepidation was happily unfounded as I discovered a near perfect match!

Unfortunately, this yarn wasn't found until I went through 3 different stores.  It's sad that the economy has gotten to the point where inventories large enough to keep the shelves filled has become a liability to the store.  I know that it can be ordered, but that doesn't help if you need the yarn right away.  There is also absolutely no way to match the color of a no dye lot yarn until you receive it.  If the color is off, you've lost 3 days (or more!) waiting for the wrong yarn and you're back to where you started.  Very frustrating!

I am using quite a bit of my own stash for this afghan, so I have not been strictly following the general rule of "buy more yarn than you think you'll need."  My afghan is about three quarters finished at this point, and I bought six 7 ounce skeins yesterday.  I know I'll have extra yarn, and that's okay as I also know I will not have to go searching for it anymore, at least for this project!

Tying Up Loose Ends

When finishing a project, one thing you should never ever do is tie up loose ends.  Knots are bad, as they are unreliable and leave a hard little nub in the work.  If the knot comes undone, there is not sufficient yarn to reattach it.  Instead the ends should be woven in.

What exactly does that mean?  When ending one skein of yarn and starting another mid-row, leave the ends, or tails, at least 2 inches long on the outside of your work.  There are many videos on the web describing exactly how to thread these tails, one at a time, into a yarn needle and weave it in.  An important note is that the idea of doing this is to not see this end when you are done.

I saw a beautiful full size afghan at a county fair last year that they offering as a prize for a raffle.  It was apparent that a lot of work had been put into it.  Yet the ends, although woven in, were painfully obvious as they were woven into the adjoining color.  The red yarn end was woven into the adjoining yellow, etc.  This distracted from the final effect.  I couldn't believe that someone would put that much time and effort into something and not finish it properly.

Another fair entry was a nicely crocheted sweater.  It appeared to have holes in it that upon close inspection were actually where the ends were pulled too tightly before weaving.  There is a simple solution to this error - hold the stitch the tail is coming from between your thumb and finger while weaving.

You want a finished crochet work to have continuity.  Stitches of the same type should all be the same size.  Ends should not peek out.  It may take time and practice to find a technique that works for you, but the end result is well worth it.

Worsted Weight Acrylic and Crochet

Like many people, when I started to crochet it was primarily with worsted weight acrylic yarn.  It's comparatively inexpensive, machine washable, easy to find, and comes in a great variety of colors.

While designing this afghan for the Herrschner's contest, I chose to use Red Heart Super Saver.  As I have not yet mastered the math involved in figuring out exactly how much yarn I will need for this project, I found myself running to the store to get a couple of more skeins yesterday.  The "no dye lot" attribute of Red Heart has saved my project this time.  There is no noticeable difference between the color of the yarn I was using from my stash and the yarn I bought yesterday.

I have found that this is not always the case, however.  I have found that the colors have changed over time, especially reds and yellows.  There is little that is quite as frustrating as running out of yarn when you are almost done a project and not being able to match the yarn to finish the project.  That is why, when purchasing yarn for a project, I always get one or two more skeins than is called for in the pattern.  You can return unused skeins to most retailers, or simply add them to your stash. 

I prefer Red Heart when working with 100% acrylic as it is usually tightly wound.  This makes it easier to work with, as you are not as likely to "split" the yarn making your stitches.  If you catch only some, but not all, of the plys of yarn, you end up with little nubs that don't belong and make the work look messy.  If you don't catch the error immediately, it can be difficult to pull out as it tends to knot.

I once made a hoodie out of Caron One Pound 100% acrylic.  It worked up okay, but after one wash it looked horrible.  It had pilled and needed a sweater shaver to look acceptable.  I've never had that problem with Red Heart.  Conversely, Caron One Pound worked up well into many afghans that have had multiple washings.  Perhaps it was simply a problem with that one batch, who knows? 

At any rate, I highly recommend using 100% acrylic on afghans so they are easily washable.  It wears well, but tends to stretch a bit.  Keep this in mind if making bags or purses.  I do not think it is the best option for apparel, as there are much better options out there that drape better, look better, and wear better.

One Idea For What To Do With Leftover Yarn

We've all been there - completed a project with a partial skein leftover that had no purpose.  There's too much to simply throw away, and you don't want to be wasteful.  Try this trick I learned a long time ago:  ball it.

Take your first partial skein of a particular weight and fiber and wind it into a ball.  Now, every time you finish a project using the same weight and fiber add it to your ball.  Eventually you will have enough there to make something with.

It is very important that you keep the fiber content and weight of the yarn consistent in your ball.  You don't want to finish an item, only to have part of it shrink or felt or otherwise get ruined in the wash.

Worsted weight acrylics and acrylic blends make wonderful scrap yarn afghans.  A friend calls them, "so ugly they are beautiful".  Usually these are on a bed, so they will not be display pieces, but still warm and functional.

Worsted weight cottons can be used to make unique handbags and tote bags.  Many commercial versions of these products are of various color and print, so your crochet version is not likely to be considered an eye sore.

Worsted weight and sport weight wools can create wonderfully eclectic sweaters or set the tone of a room as a rug.  Baby yarns tend to have the same color tone, so you can create more baby items with them.  The possibilities are as endless as your imagination!

In the long run you will be saving money as well.  Once, when I had just started a new job and had nothing extra to purchase yarn with and Christmas fast approaching, I made a rainbow afghan entirely out of scrap.  I had a bin full of partial skeins of worsted weight acrylic.  I took each one, balled it, and then lined them up on the table in the order of a rainbow.  Various shades of the same color were put in order of what I thought looked nice.  Starting with the purples (violet is the last shade of the rainbow) I rolled a ball in reverse order - violets, indigo, blues, greens, yellows, oranges, and finally reds.  Upon crocheting it in rows of double crochet, the color effect was simply stunning.  Small amounts of one color and larger amounts of another, added with the various shades of each, really did mimic that of a rainbow.  I don't think I would have put all of those colors together if I had gone out and purchased the yarn.  I had made an absolutely beautiful, one of a kind afghan without spending a cent AND I cleaned up my yarn closet in the process!

Give it a try, and share what you come up with!

The Challenge of Crochet Design

Sometimes I wonder if crochet design is like writing.  When the muse hits, I have dozens of ideas I put into a notebook.  Sometimes they just sit there.  Sometimes I look them over and wonder what on earth I had been thinking.  Sometimes there is a true gem among them.

The overall design for my Herrschnerr's entry is now on paper.  I know it will get tweaked several times before the final version is complete, but at least I now have a guide to go by.  I've found that if I type the instructions as I go, it makes putting together the final printed pattern easier.

Basically, my formula works like this:

Sketch

I am horrible at drawing, but I know what I'm trying to put on the paper.  I might use symbols or write notes in different areas of the sheet.  Usually there are arrows pointing at various things.  To anyone else, it would look worse than a doodled on piece of paper, but to me it acts like a table of contents.

Plan

What yarn would work best?  What hook should I use that will provide the proper drape of the yarn?  What is my gauge when combining the two?  How large do I want the finished product to be?  How many stitches will I need?  This period takes a lot of trial and error, and therefore a lot of time.  I will usually make several different gauge swatches, trying to find the exact feel for the piece I want to create.  Counting stitches, taking measurements of swatches, and doing the math is an absolute requirement.  One of the toughest parts is making sure the stitch pattern I want to use divides evenly into the number of stitches I need to make the size I want.

Start Crocheting

Now that I have the pattern I will be using in my head, I need to start making it to verify that it will work the way I want it to.  Every row gets a notation, such as "color A, 140 sts" or "hdc, (sc,dc) across.  When I put the yarn and crochet hook down, I'll bring my notes to the computer and type in what I did in standard notation; i.e. "Using color A, sc in each stitch across (140 sc)". 

Finishing

Finish off the crochet work by weaving in all ends and blocking if necessary.  Finish off the pattern by reviewing it to make sure it would make sense to someone else.  I have a friend who like to pattern test for me, and she will email me any questions she has.  I know that if she has a question, others would as well, therefore I modify the pattern to make it clearer.

All in all, I find designing crochet items a fun thing to do.  I know I have a lot left to learn about it, but everyone has to start somewhere, right?

Yarn Stash Control

As any crochet, knit, or yarn enthusiast is well aware, their stash of yarn can easily take over the entire house.  My breaking point, that point at which I knew I had a problem I had to figure out how to control, was when I went looking for a particular yarn in my closet, my daughter's room, the hallway closet AND my yarn closet without finding what I was looking for.  I did, however, find that the space bags I had so carefully packed with precious yarn had split open. 

That experience, coupled with the decline in the economy, led to stash control rule #1:

ONLY PURCHASE YARN FOR A SPECIFIC PROJECT

Since I have so much yarn around the house already, rule #2:

LOOK THROUGH WHAT YOU HAVE ON HAND BEFORE BUYING ANYTHING!  USE IT IF YOU HAVE IT!

How many times have you come across a yarn that you had purchased because it was beautiful and you would find a use for it someday?  Then, when you have found that use, you realize you don't have enough of the yarn to complete the project?  Thus, rule #3:

PURCHASE ENOUGH YARN TO COMPLETE THE SPECIFIC PROJECT AND LABEL IT WHEN YOU GET HOME

I use 2 1/2 gallon zip lock bags and write on them with a Sharpie what project I have in mind for it.  I know I can find the pattern directions in my Crochet Calender Binder (see previous post) which I take out and place a check mark next to the materials just purchased.  All of these zip lock bags are in the same location, so I know exactly where to look to find it.

Following these three rules has taken a dent out of my stash, thus making it much more manageable.  It has also saved tons of time looking for yarn, giving me more time to crochet it!