New knitting project - Fresh Bite Scarflet by Rebecca Hill

Friday, I got a box of yarn from Kraemer Yarns. Lots of yarn.  Some of it I'm not sure what I'm going to do with, some of it I have an idea or two.  Why did I get a box of yarn from them?  I had contacted them about using their yarn for indy dyeing, manufacturing (knitting/crocheting for modern/period projects for sale), and possibly carrying for customers. I had expected the normal color cards, wholesale pricelist and application, not a box full of regular skeins of yarn. My daughter already decided which skeins she was going to snag for projects (she knits, but these are for projects she wants me to make).

So, Friday, after finishing the knitted petticoat and the boys inverness (see my MorganAside blog). I started looking for projects to use the yarn on. I found a few, still trying to decide which ones and what yarn.

Saturday after our trip to the barn, my daughter and I wound several of the yarns from reeled skeins into "balls".  She decided that I needed to make her something out of the Kraemer Natural Skeins Eleanor.   I can understand why, it is EXTREMELY soft. Eleanor is a bulky weight,  100% Superwashed Merino yarn and is sold in 3.5 oz. reeled skeins with approx. 120 yds (3-3.75 sts per inch on US 9-11 needles).

After looking through Ravelry, she decided that she wanted me to make the Fresh Bite Scarflet by Rebecca Hill.   I made one of these before, awhile ago now, from Cascade 220.  She loved that one. Saturday evening I cast the yarn onto size 9 needles (I wasn't too worried about the gauge, after all it is a scarf). Within an hour I had finished five pattern repeats.  That is part of the reason I loved that pattern the first time, it's fast.  It didn't take long on Sunday for me to finish the skein.  I ended up two repeats short of what the pattern calls for, (probably should've had a minimum of 150-160 yds) but it's okay.  It's the perfect length for my daughter.   Now, I just need to find some blood red buttons (her idea). Then I will put it away until Christmas.




Scarflet laid out flat

Scarflet the way it will be worn.

This morning I cast on a pair of knitted undersleeves from Peterson's Magazine, January, 1859.  The pattern calls for them being knitted flat and seamed.  Since I know how bad I am at seaming knitting together, I decided to knit them in the round.  So far I've got the first thiry rows of ribbing done and have two rows of the first puff done.  I'm making them in Natural & Pepper Nature Spun Fingering weight yarn by Brown Sheep Company. Somehow, I don't think these will knit up as fast as the scarflet, especially when I have a ton of sewing to do between now and December 11 and one Tunisian crochet project that I'm trying to get done before then too.

Beginning of Knitted Undersleeves

One more thing, the yarn I used for the scarflet, Eleanor, was fantastic to work with. I had no issues with splitting or anything else. Can't wait to use it for more projects, knitting & dyeing.

That's all for now.  Have a great day!

November 30th - Lady's Knitted Under Petticoat - Godey's December 1864

Okay, here it is. The original instruction from Godey's for the knitted petticoat I've been talking about on Facebook (with my notes in red in parantheses).  If you have any questions, please ask here or on FB. Thanks for stopping by!

 

Even though this is one of the easier period patterns to understand, it can still be confusing if your not familiar with some of the terms they used in the 1860s. I will try and make this pattern easier to understand. Let me know if any of it doesn't make sense and I will try and explain it better.

Things/stitches you need to know:

1. Cast on
2. Knit
3. Purl (the original pattern, it's seam)
4. Make 1 - (This is actually a yarn over in this pattern)
5. Knit two together
6. Pass slip stitch over
7. Joining yarn (at beginning or end of row)
8. Binding off/Casting off
9. Weaving in ends

 

These are the materials I used to make the petticoat pictured below.

7 skeins of NatureSpun* Sportweight in Scarlet

2 skeins of NatureSpun Sportweight in Natural

    (*NatureSpun by Brown Sheep Company)

I used a size 5 circular needle, which I use like two straight needles. If your working on this at a civil war event, I suggest two straight wood or steel knitting needles. You may also want a bunch of stitch markers (I used 13) to help keep track of the repeats in the lace border.

 

One more note. The original pattern does not give a guage for the petticoat. Mine using NatureSpun Sportweight on #5 US needles was 6 stitches per inch and 7.5 rows per inch. The finished length on the petticoat is 22.5" & each panel is 24" wide. These measurements were taken after blocking.

 

If you need to make it longer, depending on how much longer, you might want to add more narrow stripes at the top or a large one at the bottom. (If you add a set of 21 scarlet & 1 white to the bottom you would get about 3 more inches in the length)

 

Here's the pattern. Have fun!

 

 

 

Lady's Knitted Under Petticoat

Godey's Lady's Book & Magazine, December 1864, p.533

 

 

 

 

Materials: One and a quarter pounds of four-thread scarlet fleecy and quarter pound of white ditto.

 

We cannot too highly recommend these very warm garments for wearing under crinolines, as they cling so nicely to the figure. Our model is made in scarlet and white wool, those portions of the illustration represented black being knitted in scarlet, and the tiny stripes in white. The petticoat need not be made very long, therefore does not take a great deal of time to knit.

 

Cast on 141 stitches with scarlet, knit 4 rows.  (make sure you cast on fairly loosely)

 

5th row - Join the white, knit 1, *make 1 (yarn over), knit 3, slip 1, knit 2 together, pass the slipped stitch over, knit 3, make, 1 (yarn over), knit 1, (if your using stitch markers place one now) repeat from*

 

6th row - Seamed. (purl)

 

Repeat the 5th and 6th rows till 8 are done.

 

Join the scarlet and knit 4 rows.

 

Repeat the 5th and 6th rows till 8 more are done, knit 4 rows of scarlet. (If you used stitch markers, you can remove them as you are purling the 8th row. You won't need them until the next panel.)

 

29th. - Knit 3 with white, slip 2 stitches, repeat. (it sounds a bit strange but by the end of the row you will have alternating 3 white & 2 red stitches)

30th. - Seam the white stitches, slip the scarlet (purl the white stitches).

31st and 32nd. - The same as 29th and 30th.

33rd and 34th. - Knit plain with scarlet.

35th. - Knit 1 with white. *slip 2, knit 3 with white, repeat. (basically the same thing as row 29, 2 red & 3 white)

36th. - Seam the white stitches, slip the scarlet (again purl the white, slip the red).

37th and 38th. - The same as 35th and 36th. - Knit 2 rows of scarlet.

 

This completes the border of the petticoat.

 

For the centre knit and seam (purl) alternate rows of scarlet till 18 are done, knit 1 row of white, seam and knit alternate rows of scarlet till 15 are done, knit 1 row of white, knite a stripe of 13 rows of scarlet, 1 row of white, then a stripe of 11, 9, 7 rows, with 1 row of white between each, knit 6 stripes with 5 rows of scarlet and 1 row of white between each, knit 1 row of scarlet, then knit 24 rows in ribs of 2 and 2, cast off. Three breadths will be required. Join them with single crochet, and add an elastic band (I used 3/4" cotton elastic, also called swimsuit elastic. You will have to hand sew the petticoat to the elastic. I divided the petticoat and the elastic in fourths and pinned it on working one quarter at a time.).

 

 

 

 

November 29th - Catch Up & Another Night Cap

Okay, so it's been almost a year since I actually updated this blog, it was almost 6 months since I updated my other blog (MorganAside). I always say I will try and be more....hmm...consistent but sometimes life just gets too busy.  So let's see if I can remember everything I've knitted/crocheted since the last post. 

I took me what seemed like forever but I did finally finish the white night cap on Christmas eve last year (I had started them on Dec. 3rd). I also finished three pairs of hand knit socks for my daughter too.

Since the beginning of the year, I've made four Tunisian crocheted "vests" for a TV pilot (which wasn't picked up), knitted two men's neckwarmers for civil war reenactors and more (see pictures). 

Oh and I finally finished and publishedmy first two Tunisian crochet patterns the end of March.  One pattern is for a mens' scarf and the other for a ladies' sontag (includes two variations). Both of these patterns can be purchased through Originals by Kay.  There are more to come, too. I am currently working on finishing one up. Hopefully, I will have it available at the Midwest Civil War Civilians conference in Fort Wayne, IN in January.

I've also been working on knitting up a couple of petticoats from Godeys' Ladies' Book & Magazine, December 1864. I will put the pattern up later today. It's actually pretty easy to make, just takes some time because you have to knit three panels. Currently, I'm working on weaving in the ends so I can block it and crochet the panels together then add the waistband elastic. I've got a second one started, too.

 

Like the heading says, I've also started another night cap.  It turns out the white one is too big for my husbands head and he didn't care for the fact that it was white either.  I've got the new one to where I stop increasing and continue on to the plain knitting part.  This one is also made from Brown Sheep Cotton Fine but in Deep Sea Fog. The pattern I'm using can be found on this blog post. I'm planning on finishing this one in time for Christmas this year. :)

 

Time to go for know.  Watch for the petticoat pattern.

 

Keep knitting & crocheting.