I’ll Knit If I Want To: Episode 86

Welcome to I’ll Knit (& Spin!) If I want To! I asked y’all to send in some of your questions (from everything from fiber arts, to designing and on!) so I could put together a little video for y’all every Friday doing my best to answer your questions!

In this week’s episode we cover:

1. Hi Andrea! I’ve been really inspired by your combination spins. I’ve never mixed braids or blends before, but I’ve just ordered a bunch of new fibre so I can play with combo spins. That being said I’m a little nervous. Anything you recommend avoiding in terms of colour combinations? Should I avoid contrasting colours… although I can’t really control where the colours will match up during plying. Do you just throw caution to the wind and hope for the best?

My current spin is a mix of Hello Yarn Fiber: http://shop.helloyarn.com/ & Wound Up Fiber Arts: https://woundupfiberarts.bigcartel.com/

2. Hello, Andrea! This is a decreasing question brought about by some major yarn chicken. I have some beautiful red tonal yarn that I've been saving for just the right pattern and along came Sprite! I knew darn well that I didn't have enough to make the pattern as written and that it would not only be cropped but the sleeves would be shortened as well. I'm fine with that. Yarn chicken is fun and I usually can't help but mess with patterns anyway. My question is about decreasing to make a more fitted waist. I tried decreasing on each side(below underarms) when I was 2 inches from my waist by doing K2tog, K1, SSK on every row. Now that I'm starting my ribbing I think the sides(where I did those decreases) might be really puffy or puckered. Should I rip back and decrease evenly around the rows? Or maybe there's a way I'm not thinking of? If this question is too wonky I totally get it. lol Thank you for sharing yourself with the world. We appreciate you so much!

3. I bought a beautiful single skein of a farm yarn-sport weight yarn at Rhinebeck, alpaca/merino/sari silk blend, it’s delightful. My question is-how can I incorporate what feel like “precious” skeins of yarn into my knitting. Do you have suggestions for certain designs or projects? Mixing fibers or weights can be intimidating. Thanks so much-love your weekly videos 😃

The yarn I picked up in Iceland: https://gilhagi.is/en/webshop/

4. Hi Andrea! I’m completely new to garment knitting this year. I’ve been watching your podcast for a long time and have heard you say many times that knitters tend to tighten up when moving from knitting flat to in the round. I am very used to knitting with plant fibers and have just begun to work on a raglan sweater in wool. I finished the back and forth knitting and joined in the round and I cannot believe the difference in tension. I’ve never had any big problems with tension before. I even tried going up a needle size and my tension is still so different. Is there a reason for this? Do you have any tips to make this transition smoother? Thank you for your help!

5. Hi Andrea, can you talk about your knitting journal? What type of book you use and what you write? Have you tried different brands or formats? Do you use files online? Do you use anything like Knit Companion? I usually print out my patterns and write all of the info about yarn, yardage, needle size, gauge, etc - then scribble all over them as I’m going along. At the end I tape on the yarn labels and some bits of the yarn and put them in clear sheet protectors in a binder. My binder is stuffed and messy and a journal seems very appealing!

Design journal (dot grid): https://actionmethod.com/collections/...

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