New stitches: Tunisian Purl Stitch

I learned quite a few Tunisian stitches last weekend, but I’m going to share this one first because it solves the curling problem!

I give you the Tunisian Purl Stitch! *cue Hallelujah Chorus*

It’s basically the same as doing the simple stitch, but you start off with the yarn in front of the hook rather than behind it.

The only awkward part I’ve found is that my first attempts were super tight so when I came to use them on the next round I couldn’t get the hook through. One solution (shown in this here video) is to hold on to the yarn with your thumb while you yarn over, which keeps it from pulling up tight.

(Side note: I never knew people said TOO-NEE-SHUN. I always say TYOO-NIZ-EE-UN.)

The magic is that just one row of this purl stitch at the start of my work stopped the curling entirely!

See, this is the start of my sleeve. You can see the bumps on the front, that’s the purl row, and the rest of the cuff is simple stitch, and it’s not curling at all.

I’m assuming (but haven’t actually tested) that a piece made entirely of purl stitch would curl the other way, and it’s the balance between the two directions that keeps it straight. But making something entirely out of purl stitch seems silly to me when simple stitch is less fiddly, so I’m going to purl one or two rows at the start of my Tunisian pieces and then carry on as normal with other stitches.

I’m so excited about fixing the curling problem! Is that weird? Is anyone else as happy about it? Please let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

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FO Friday 09.02.18

I managed to finish two goodies this week, neither of which are much use today as it’s gloriously sunny in Glasgow!

First up, I finally finished my swirl hat

I’d been putting it off for a wee while because I’d reached the point where there were too few stitches for my circular needles and I needed to switch to DPNs. I’ve never used DPNs before. But if you don’t try, you never learn, and the hat is just for me so totally messing it up wouldn’t have been a disaster.

I think my DPNs were too big (they aren’t labelled) because there were some pretty big gaps between my stitches when I finished. But I fixed them as best I could when sewing in the end and they’re not too noticeable. Aside from that it was really quite simple, I should have just picked them up sooner!

The other item is my lovely Tunisian scarf. I must say I was a little worried when I finished and had the most curled-up scarf ever, but of course blocking did it’s magic thing.

You can see that the end really wants to keep curling though. I did find a solution to this for future makes, which I’ll tell you about tomorrow.

I got a wee bit cross with the yarn when this one un-dyed section appeared halfway through the skein.

But it’s grown on me and now I just see it as a unique feature of this particular scarf.

Would that one odd stripe put you off the scarf? Who else has some FOs to share? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 07.02.18

Current WIP count: 5

I managed to cross some WIPs off my list over the weekend, so of course I started a couple more!

Having learned a raft of new Tunisian skills on Saturday, I’ve decided to embark on my first proper item of clothing; a long-sleeved top.

There’s not much to show yet, just the start of one sleeve

Because I’m me and I just love to run as soon as I can walk, I’m making it a rainbow top. You can see that the first section is pink and purple, and I’ve just started the next section which will be purple and blue. The one after that will be blue and green, and so on.

These are the colours I’ll be using

In reverse order because the sleeves are done from the cuff up.

I also started another tube hat, just for something simple to do at choir and on the subway. It’s basic knitting in a rather dull grey colour so no photos yet. I might crochet a bright flower and sew it on, give it a pop of colour.

So that’s what I’m working on. How’s everyone’s week going so far? What are you working on? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 31.01.18

Current WIP count: 7

Eeeeeh it’s creeping up again! But I don’t need to start anything new right now so I can get on with finishing what I’ve got.

This week I’ve just been plodding along with my Tunisian scarf

Still loving the feel of this yarn, I definitely need to make something for myself using some!

I’m currently trying to work out whether I could do a knit stitch section for the middle and then finish with simple stitch again, or if that would look weird. I guess I can always try it and frog if I don’t like it.

What do you think? And what’s everyone working on this week? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx