Projects
Breton Cowl Freakout
Dear Kay,
At long last, cowls.
For many moons now, I have been thinking about Antonia Shankland’s Breton Cowl, writing about the Breton Cowl, looking at yarn, patting our samples, having a fine time getting our Breton Cowl ready to go for the first MDK Field Guide.
Velvet and Raspberry
But I haven’t made one. Until now.
Today is the day, y’all—I wound yarn for my first Breton Cowl. It’s not going to be my last, I am certain, because the colors are all pretty much 100% up my alley. Uncanny, really.
Field and Pollen
One confounding little issue for me: the pattern calls for the Shibui Silk Cloud yarn—the contrast stripe—to be doubled. I don’t have a scale at home, having sacrificed my postal scale to the Department of Shipping at MDK World Headquarters on Taylor Street. I never seem to be there at the moment I want to wind this yarn. Also: Ecommerce Manager Liz is typically hogging up the space shipping stuff, dang it. “Stand aside, woman, I’ve got mohair to weigh!”
O the yarns!
So, seeing as how I’m thinking about the scales of justice a lot these days, I rigged up a way to weigh the balls of yarn here at home that requires only a coat hanger and two hooks, either Christmas tree ornament hooks or the more ecumenical paper clips. I demonstrate how this all works in the frankly moving cinematic experience up top: “How to Divide One Ball of Yarn into Two Equal Balls: Un Film d’Ann Shayne.”
Two equal-sized balls of Silk Cloud. So chuffed.
This Breton Cowl is going to be a highlight of my Giftalong knitting. It’s a fast knit, yes. But the real reason I’m going for it is that I get to spend time with this lushylush merino/cashmere with a little silk/mohair action in there.
Graphite and Ash
And if there’s anything I’m in the mood for, it’s a quiet bit of lushness.
Happy at last to be qualified to join the Breton Cowl conversation over in The Lounge. I have strong opinions about welt construction. Come join the fray.
Love,
Ann
Now that is simply ingenious!
I’m a little confused as to why you couldn’t just pull one end from the outside and one end from the inside and just use one ball. That way you wouldn’t have to divide into two balls or wrangle them while knitting…
Ann, you’re a hoot!
Deeply moved by this short film. The suspense! The animal! The music! I took the easy way out of this dilemma by winding the yarn into a center pull ball and using both ends as I knit.
GO TO THE HEAD OF THE CLASS, Michele.
Brilliant solution – and if you’re like me with over 95% of your life still in storage, you could use paperclips or even yarn to hold those 2 balls.
Ann, you’re a genius!
I love my Knit Picks scale. Add one to your Christmas list! I even bought a second one for my husband (yes, as a Christmas gift) so that he could actually weigh mail with it without having to get mine from my knitting closet. Bonus, I now have two locations for weighing my yarn!
http://www.knitpicks.com/accessories/Weigh_n_Digital_Scale__D81597.html
Oh man, that’s genius problem-solving! And Kermit — so very ready for his closeup.
Thanks, Ann. You make my day.
KERMIT <3
Also, great idea, Ann!
Love this yarnology tip!
Necessity really is the mother of invention. Brilliant solution I would never have thought of. I see Kermit enjoyed his moment of fame last time and is ready for a close up.
Hmmmm. I wound mine into a cake, and pulled one end from the inside and one from the outside. So far so good. We’ll see if I have a tangled mess of fluff at the end, but I’ve got it in a plastic bag with a corner snipped off, so there’s not a lot of shifting around.
It works, but there is nothing at all cinematically engaging about it. Whereas your solution is an artistic tour de force complete with and engaging sound track. Yet another reason why we all love you so much.
Lol, the Citizen Kane of yarn-winding YouTubes. Just carving out a niche here. I should have explained that my need for two separate balls was that I was making sleeves, and was using a yarn that is no longer available. I think you’re on the right track for doubling your yarn–any normal human would use a ball winder and scale.
brilliant
Educational and entertaining! High Five Ann!
Great idea! Fantastic film! And Kermit looks so suave in his tux!
You are a GREAT screenwriter and narrator, and Kermit is a phenomenal dramatic actor. Just a guess here: is Eliot directing?
Ecumenical! Ha!
You. Are. Brilliant.
If Kermit thinks it’s okay, I think it’s okay!
I really really want to hear your opinions about welts. They appear to be do simple, but scratch the surface and there’s much drama.
Great idea to get even balls of yarn! I have to do this a lot, and happy to have an actually helpful way to do it. Thanks!!
Ann, I love your writing and the projects it describes. A big ball of comfort is what MDK is to me.