Inspiration
Cloud 9: My Belinda Wrap
Dear Kay,
The other day Hubbo was cleaning our blender and running soapy water in the thing to get down there where the blades are hard to reach, and somehow the volcanic force of the soap and bubbles and the HIGH setting blew off the lid and lobbed a mighty wave of protein-powder-enhanced suds onto my Belinda Wrap.
Kitchen knitting is not without its hazards.
Once I thought about it, I realized that an early soak for this half-done project wasn’t such a bad idea. And protein powder? Sure!
I have been dying to see the stitches spread out when blocked, which is when the Belinda Wrap reaches its full glory. So I did a cleansing dip in the sink (needles out of the water), and yanked on it and spread it on a towel.
This is Rowan Kidsilk Haze in Blue Poppy and Hurricane.
This pattern starts with knitting a long strip of one color. Then you pick up stitches along an edge of that piece and knit the same openwork stitch pattern in another direction.
The two panels of color do a fun thing when you fold the piece in half.
It makes an airy sort of plaid.
I went with straight needles for this, a rare thing for me, because the fine Kidsilk Haze tends to catch on the joins of a circular needle.
I wish these were about three inches shorter, but I am soldiering on, undaunted!
If you’re wondering about knitting with a mohair yarn this time of year, I’m finding this easy going as long as I’m in an air-conditioned environment. Screened porch seems dubious. I wouldn’t take this one to the pool. And mohair at the beach would be the death of me.
I’m so close to done. I will be taking it to the ice-cold Belcourt Theatre to watch a movie soon—it’s a weightless snuggler. You know how you knit faster when you’re at the finish line?
Love,
Ann
Hubbo cleans the blender?? My hubbo probably doesn’t even know where the blender is (on the counter for all to see). On the other hand he will drop everything to comply with my slightest request, which is a very nice feature indeed. I have several balls of KSH bouncing around and both you and Kay’s books, and an always strong desire to go to the theatah, so The Belinda Wrap might be in my future. Thanks, Ann, for the suggestion.
I am happy for the exploding blender if it means Hubbo is cleaning the blender . . . ; )
I wanted so much to knit this and tried with multiple needles, including straight ones. Lace always gets so tight for me, even when I’m consciously trying to knit loosely — knid of like those finger trap toys — and I can’t get the needle under the stitch. Any advice? (Ended up starting the Albers wrap instead, which is a joy.)
Try tugging the too tight stitches at the base. I did two Belinda wraps when the pattern was just out. It also helps if you have sharp tips on your straights.
Hugs to you, Mary Sue! Originator of the two-stitch tug! Listen up folks, Mary Sue is testifying some truth here.
It wants to be on a slippery needle. Do you have any of those old metal straights hanging around?
Gail – Is it possible that you’re not moving newly-made stitches fully onto the needle, i.e. leaving them on the tapered part when you go to make the next stitch? That’s one way knitting gets tight.
Good thought, Miriam.
And thanks all for your help!
Definitely moving onto the needle, so not the issue. Good advice to try again with sharp metal straights. Such a beautiful piece and the yarn is delicious. I will try again.
My Belinda in progress is a daily joy to me!!! I have craved it since the 2nd MDK book, and am knitting it and a sweater for my man, both to be complete by September 21, our 4 year Anniversary!
Kind (typo)
I keep making mistakes and needing to rip out. It’s like knitting with cobwebs but I so want to succeed! I would love a video on how to fix mistakes on this thing. I may rip out and start all over again because I really want it to be beautiful!
I haven’t seen the pattern but when I was into knitting lace I used a “life line.” You run a length of contrasty yarn through the stitches on your needle and just leave it there. If you make a mistake you only have to pull it out to your life line to pick up the stitches instead of starting all the way over.
If I made it several rows without errors I’d pull out the life line and put it in the latest row. It saved me more than once!
I’ve found that nylon twine (not thread, but string you buy in hardware store) is ideal for life line especially with sticky yarn, because it’s so slippery. I like the neon pink or yellow, and be sure to get skinny enough you can get through the eye of the tapestry needle.
Linda, I am having the same problem. It seems as if it should be a simple project, but I think I’ve restarted it about 8 times. It is now in time out before I go mad. Why, why, why can’t I do this?
Oh Linda and Kathleen! Definitely take a breather if it’s not sparking joy. I found that it helped to start very very slowly, with no aim in mind except to get the hang of the yarn and stitch pattern. Like, one row, call it a victory, come back the next day and do another.
I spent 3 weeks on a sailboat recently and took along a ball of Kidsilk haze to knit a one skein scarf. While on the deck, anchored in a beautiful bay, knitting away, the wind picked up my attached ball of Kidsilk and blew it back through the rigging all the way to the stern, where thankfully it got caught in the stern rigging instead of floating overboard. This yarn is light as a feather! I madly ran with my almost finished scarf, around and about the boat untangling it from all the lines, laughing all the way….it could have been a funny video if anyone else was witness! The scarf turned out beautiful and the Belinda Wrap is next on my queue.
I saw your wrap in process. I added my second color on the way home from Shakerag. Love this project.
Kidslik Haze 4-evah!!!
Ann and MDK: the links to the patterns on your site need to state how much yarn is needed .. in case of a kidsilk haze stash .., just sayin’.
Thank you for the heads up! We’ll be sure to add that. For Belinda, it’s two balls of two colors of Kidsilk Haze.
I had the same thought so thanks Ann. And heads up about some recent comments I have sent in about various functions on your new shiny website that are not working just right. All in the spirit of helping my favorite people be perfect!
My lifeline is a length of nylon (I think) beading cord with the wire in the middle. It was too curly at first so I stuck it in boiling water for a few seconds and then pulled it out straight till it cooled again. After that I dipped the ends in nail polish to make them smoother. Other than needing to redip the ends, it has worked well for years now.
It’s very pretty! I love the colors, too.
This said weightless snuggler kept me cozy and cocooned whilst at my most vulnerable waiting for my flight from BNA to MSP a few days ago, thanks to a dear Angel I know from Nashville! ♥️
So excited to make this! Thanks for the kid silk swag bag!
Oh, Ann! I grew up going to the Belcourt Theatre in the 1960’s and 70’s! I’m so glad that it endues in some form. I relish the thought of you going there in that lovely shawl.