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Mary Jane Mucklestone

Hand Knitting Blog & Knitting Patterns

Maine

Cushing Cowl

February 20, 2020 by Mary Jane 1 Comment

I love a cowl. Cozy and warm! And they won’t blow off or strangle you in the wind, but rather stay put and do their job.

Say hello to Cushing Cowl, inspired by the diagonal knitting of Maine fiber artist Katharine Cobey. I was scheduled to teach my Contemporary Stranded Knitting class at the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland Maine, who are having an exhibit of Katharine’s work. Wanting to add a little of her influence, I got to wondering how to apply her ideas about diagonals to stranded colorwork. I went a bit wild in the process, making zigzags, arrows, chevrons and diamonds that all stemmed from one little pattern repeat.

I began by playing around with diagonal lines, and settled on a 6 stitch x 6 row, diagonal pattern – 3 stitches of each color marching to the left. I flipped the motif horizontally to see what would happen. I discovered that if I added another column of stitches, I could make an arrow shape (above right) I’ve outlined the original 6×6 pattern in red so you can see. Next I flipped that whole new bit down, and added a row to make a diamond shape! That’s how it starts. The possibilities are endless!

I wanted a graphic look for my cowl, so I dove into my stash and came out with two skeins of local Maine based, Quince & Co. Lark, worsted weight yarn in Pea Coat, a nice dark navy for the Main Color. I wanted to pair it with an off-white. I didn’t have a full skein of anything, but found a couple of partial white balls, Audouin, sort of an oatmeal color, and a little ball of Egret, a bright white.

Necessity is the mother of invention, I used them both! Plus, I think having the two slightly different whites are what really make these solid colors work so nicely. The effect is very subtle, but so much more lively than if I had just used one contrast color.

MJM iat the town landing in Falmouth Maine, wearing Cushing Cowl and Dash Happy Hat

I’ve been wearing my version ever since! Here I’m at the end of the dock in Falmouth Maine, at the town landing.

Olivia, my wonderful intern for the last few weeks, willingly took on making a second sample. She choose Lark in River, a medium blue color and a wonderful variegated yellow called Salty Dog, in Dream State, by Spincycle Yarns out of Bellingham, Washington.

We were both delighted with the resulting cowl, the colorplay of the Spincycle yarn is effortlessly beautiful! Olivia herself is extra extra, agreeing with only a tiny hesitation to being my supermodel at the drop of a hat, twice!

I can not thank her enough, she’s the best!

Estimated Worsted Weight Yarn Amounts

  • Version 1 MC 165yd [150m],  CC1 60yd [55m],  CC2 30yd [28m]
  • Version 2 MC 165yd [150m],  CC  90yd [83m]

Cushing Cowl

20% off with code: 2020

through midnight

Sunday February 21, 2020

on Ravelry

My thanks to you!

Further Reading: Diagonal Knitting: A Different Slant, by Katharine Cobey


I LOVE seeing your MJM WIPs and FOs! Please tag me so I don’t miss them! @mjmucklestone #maryjanemucklestone

Filed Under: Knitting Tagged With: Classes, color, colorwork, colour, colourwork, cowl, design, handknitting, inspiration, knitting pattern, Maine, quick knit, quince&co, ravelry, spincycle yarn, stranded knitting, winter accessories, wool, yarn

Sólbein Steek Reinforcement

December 20, 2018 by Mary Jane 13 Comments

I designed Solbein Cardigan to be an ethereal light weight garment using a larger needle than is called for on the ball band. Lettlopi is an aran weight yarn and I used a needle size you’d more commonly use with a bulky weight yarn.

Sólbein is knit top down and in the round, with two purled steek stitches down the front which are later cut open to make it a cardigan. This is a pretty common way of making steek stitches in Iceland, often they only have a single purled stitch. The column of knit stitches on the reverse side make it easy to see where to run a line of sewing machine stitching to reinforce them. My Sólbein Cardigan pattern comes with an illustrated tutorial for the machine sewn process.

Now I know it isn’t always easy to carry a sewing machine around in your knitting bag, but a crochet hook fits just fine. Guess what? You can reinforce your steek stitches with slip stitch crochet! The thing is, it’s a little tricky with the purl-stitch steek to see what you’re doing. It may be wise to plan ahead if you know you don’t want to use a sewing machine and make a different kind of steek.

I made a couple of swatches, practicing for color and I decided to make some steek stitches in them so I could quickly show how to do a crocheted steek with the two purled stitches as the pattern is written, and another version with 3 stockinette stitches for the steek.

Purled Steek Stitches
A pink basting thread marks the center of the two purl-stitch steek.
The purled steek stitches are easy to see on the reverse side of the fabric where they appear as stockinette stitch.
In real life, you can see the steek stitches underneath the floats that obscure them. If you were using a sewing machine to reinforce the steeks you would work from this side. The sewing machine will nail down the floats and the steek stitches.

Plan ahead If you know you’d like to do crocheted reinforcement, you may want to make a 3 stitch or 5 stitch stockinette-stitch steek. You will want to alternate the colors used in the rows you are knitting. This will make it easier to work the crochet reinforcement because it is easy to see the individual stitches.

Sample stockinette stitch steek charts. The stitches of the three stitch steek will be cut down the center of stitch #2. The five stitch steek will be cut down the center of stitch #3.

Stockinette Stitch Steek with 3 Stitches
A pink basting thread picks out the center stitch of the steek. With crochet, you need to work from the right side of the work so the finished edge will magically fold to the inside once the button band is picked up.

Let’s get started!

First gather all your materials together. Make sure you are well rested and hydrated. Have an apple handy or a chocolate bar in case you get hungry.

You’ll need a pair of sharp scissors. A crochet hook slightly smaller in diameter than the Lettlopi. For the reinforcing yarn choose a color close to the body of your garment, just to make sure it won’t show through to the front. It should be a sticky yarn, not something like superwash. I used Jamieson & Smith 2 ply jumper weight. And for my demo I chose a color that would stand out not blend in so you can see it.

I also like to have a tapestry needle and a bright thread slightly longer than the length of the garment. I used it for basting down the center stitch as seen above, and where I will eventually cut. It also helps me when I’m picking up the stitches I’m going to crochet.

I’m going to show you the stockinette stitch steek first, because it is a lot easier to see.

Reinforcing Stockinette stitch steek with slip-stitch crochet

We work a line of slip stitch crochet as reinforcement. As you face the garment (or swatch) work from the bottom left side, moving to the left, up towards the neckline. When you get to the end of the steek, fasten off the yarn. Then rejoin new yarn and work down the right side of the steek.

Working the Slip-stitch crocheted reinforcement.

Left to right above: Working from bottom left, insert the hook in one leg one of the stitch adjacent to the center stitch and one leg of the center stitch. Pull reinforcing yarn through. Insert the hook through the next legs to the left of the ones just worked. Bottom row left to right: Pull the reinforcing yarn through new legs and the loop of the reinforcing yarn. Continue in this manner until you reach the end of the steek.

One side of steek reinforced with slip stitch crochet

Left: Working second side of steek. Right: Both sides of steek reinforced.

Pull apart the reinforced stitches to reveal the bars between them which we will cut.

It is so pretty and tidy!

The act of picking up for the button band will further secure the floats.

I didn’t add button bands, maybe next week!

Crochet reinforcement for purl-stitch steek stitches

Now! Reinforcing the purl-stitch-steek with slip-stitch crochet. It is a bit hard to see the stitches you need to pick up. Just go slowly and analyze as you go, peeking to the inside if it helps. We will be crocheting one leg of the center purl stitch and the closest leg of the adjacent body stitch. This means we will be infringing on the body of the sweater, but it is only going to reduce the circumference of the sweater by one or two stitches depending on where you pick up for the button band.

The process is the same as the stockinette stitch steek, only it’s a lot harder to figure out which leg of the purl stitch you need to catch, but as I said, go slowly. And when you’re finished, celebrate!

It makes a pretty edge on the right side. On the wrong side the floats are floating free. They can be caught when you pick up for the button band as you can see below. Also remember, Lettlopi is sticky, so it is unlikely to unravel.

OK folks! That’s it for now! Hope to see you in January for the Fringe and Friends Steekalong! Tag your pictures #fringeandfriendssteekalong #sólbeincardigan #maryjanemucklestone so we can all find them and see them!

Fringe and Friends Knitalong 2019: Get ready to steekalong!
Sólbein palette ideas and a GIVEAWAY
Steekalong prep: Mary Jane on choosing yarn
Steekalong prep: More than one way to knit a steek

Sólbein Cardigan Images by Carrie Bostick Hoge. All other images are mine. Solbein Cardigan pattern can be found on Ravelry and also in Making Magazine No.4 Lines.

Many thanks to Emily Qualey for making the gif magic !

    Filed Under: Events, Patterns Tagged With: apparel, artisinal, color, colorwork, colour, craft, crochet, fair isle, handmade, icelandic, knit, lopi, Maine, Mary Jane Mucklestone, steek, steeking, stranded knitting, tutorial, wool, yarn

    Off The Grid

    August 9, 2018 by Mary Jane 1 Comment

    http://fiber-trek.squarespace.com/wool-scouts-retreat

    http://fiber-trek.squarespace.com/wool-scouts-retreat

    Hello Friends!
    Just a note to let you know that I’ll be off the grid for ten days in August beginning on the 10th. So if I seem super silent – Not To Worry! I’ll be back in my usual haunts of Instagram, Facebook and here too…though I have been lax.

    I’ll be teaching at the Wool Scouts Retreat in at a remote camp in Northern Maine, two sessions that I’ve been looking forward to all year, we had so much fun last time! There is no cell phone service, Wifi or even electricity in our cabins! HEAVEN!

    In addition, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes that I look forward to sharing with you some time soon!
    Happy Summer!
    Or Happy Winter if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere!
    oxo
    MJ

    Filed Under: Events Tagged With: artisinal, craft, fiber, fibre, handmade, handmade craft, knit, knitting, Maine, Mary Jane Mucklestone, Wool Scouts Retreat

    Springtime in Maine

    May 1, 2018 by Mary Jane 2 Comments

    The days are getting warmer…at least some of the time! That means outdoor adventures that can finally include knitting without fear of frozen fingers. Last weekend I visited Arrowsic Island, home of Squirrel Point Light, an easy day trip from Portland. After a ramble down a long dirt road it’s an easy hike out to the light on the Kennebec River. Walk a little further for fantastic views from Bald Head. We watched hunting ospreys and bald eagles nesting.

    If you haven’t already, sign up for my Newsletter! I’ll have special offers and that’s the only way to get them!

    Although the earlybird rates are over, you can still sign up for Knit Stars. The team will be visiting me here in Maine, I’m hoping to take you to some of my favorite places to knit! Places that inspire me are where I get my best ideas. Use this link: https://knitstars.mykajabi.com/a/4441/nntkGo6u

    Where is your favorite springtime place to knit?

    My Maritime Mitts are perfect for this weather! Find them on Ravelry – Just click the pic!

    Filed Under: Events Tagged With: Arrowsic Island, color, colorwork, fiber, fibre, knit, Knit Stars, knitting, knitting pattern, Maine, Mary Jane Mucklestone, Squirrel Point Light, wool

    Nash Island Sheep Shearing

    May 18, 2017 by Mary Jane 24 Comments

    Nash is an island in Maine inhabited only by sheep. Sheep and gulls. Once upon a time, a hundred years ago, a family lived in a lighthouse on the next tiny island, and the lighthouse keeper’s daughter Jenny, kept a flock of sheep. The descendants of these sheep still live on these islands, all by themselves, with the gulls. The islands lie in the middle of the blue of the sea and the blue of the sky. They are nearly flat, with no trees, only brambles, short grasse and bog. Stony grey beach surrounds them, strewn with seaweed and bleached driftwood.
    It’s a magical place.

    Every year, this community of sheep is invaded by another community. A small flotilla of lobster boats arrive with a lively crew of humans set for shearing the flock’s lovely fog washed fleece. They’ve been doing it for years, the same group of people, family, old friends, a smattering of new friends. As people wade ashore, unloading the boats by passing needed supplies hand to hand, the sheep take one look and head for the far side of the island – having none of it.

    Coffee and breakfast breads lure the folk together so Alfie Wakeman can explain the drill. As a child he summered nearby and became close friends with Jenny Cirone, the shepherdess. She taught him how to lobster fish and they fished and tended her sheep together until she died at 91.  Jenny gave the islands and sheep over to Alfie and he and his family have been the stewards ever since, doing things the way Jenny always did them.

    Rounding up the sheep is done without dogs, only people. Alfie explains the time tested strategy. A couple of runners, head out to circle the edge of the island, herding the sheep along the coast, while separate teams of people hide in clumps in the bog and field, trying their best to look like rocks.

    As the sheep pass them, these teams stand up and stretch their arms wide to discourage the sheep from retreating or heading inland. As more groups stand up, all move forward in wide-armed paper doll lines, encouraging the sheep into the weathered pens by the shore.

    Now the real work begins. Separating the lambs from their mothers, “lamb tossing” is a lively and challenging operation. Fearless teenagers grab lambs from amidst the mass of wooly baaing ewes and hand them over the fence where they are passed off to someone else who carries the flailing lamb – all pink ears and sharp little hooves – over to another person situated in the lamb pen.

    Here they are checked and administered to and set free. The mothers are not happy with this situation. Their crying and calling out to their babies will continue all day.

    The shearing itself is spectacular. Four amazing women on the mats, shears sharpened. Donna Kausen and Geri Valentine have each been shearing for 35+ years, while Eleni, Alfie’s wife has been at it for 8 and 2016 was their eldest daughter Wren’s second. Their strength, stamina and precision is astounding.The sheep are wrangled one by one out of the pens and onto the mats, grabbed by the shearer and together with the wrangler put on their rumps, and clamped between the shearers legs.

    Alongside the shearer is the specialized job of “shit picking,” getting the worst of the soiled fleece away from the good parts. Shit-pickers must be nimble, act quickly and not get in the way of the shearers or wranglers. In between shearing the sweeper keeps the mats clean with a quick pass of the broom.

    The newly shorn fleeces are handed over to Jani Estell, island wool manager and owner of Starcroft Fiber Mill, a gem – my hero – with a sly smile, sparkly eyes and dry wit, who never seems to hurry yet keeps the whole show going.

    She has a special touch for sorting fleeces. Fleeces with the longest staple fiber, shiny and lustrous are reserved for hand spinning (sold before they are even off the animals). The soft silky first shearing lamb fleece are for her very special Fog yarn. The prime ewe fleece, long and soft with a fine crimp are for Nash Island Light, a luscious worsted weight yarn. Soft bouncy fleece that’s “scoodgy” (a made up word because one was lacking) and crimped is for Tide, the dk weight yarn often used for colorwork. No island wool is wasted, anything that does not make the grade is used for felting fiber – reported to be the best out there.

    As Jani calls out the grade, the fleeces fly on the skirting table where a small legion of fiber enthusiasts skirt them. Though the island lifestyle keeps the fleeces incredibly clean, there are still odd bits of brambles, seaweed and soiled areas that must be pulled out. The fleeces are carefully rolled up in vintage floral sheets, labeled and later put into huge burlap bags. Jani will hand skirt every fleece a second time when they get to her mill.

    When the sun is directly overhead it’s time to break for an unbelievable potluck spread. Shearers eat first! After refueling and resting the shearing will continue. When finally finished and the sun approaches the waterline, the whole crowd will load the boats with fleece and gear and head for the mainland happy and satisfied with a job well done. The final task of the day is dropping the rams off on a different smaller island to spend the summer away from the girls, ensuring no lambs will be inconveniently born in winter – and a reason you find so many islands called Ram amongst Maine’s coastal islands.

    On Nash, the ewes and lambs are relieved to be reunited and happy to have the island to themselves again.

    Find Nash Island wool turned into knitting yarn at Starcroft Fiber Mill in Columbia Maine (starcroftfiber.com). Each fleece will be gently washed in bio-degradable soap. Once dry the fibers are hand-fed into the carding, drafting and spinning machines. The finished yarns are hand-dyed by Jani in small batches with colors inspired by the coastal beauty of Downeast Maine.

    Essay by Mary Jane Mucklestone – first published in MAKING No.2/Fauna

     

     

    Filed Under: Knitting, Travel Tagged With: Maine, Maine wool, Nash Island, Shearing, Sheep, wool

    It is Still Winter!!!!

    March 12, 2013 by Mary Jane 5 Comments

    skiing

    For my birthday I got cross-country SKIS + boots + poles which = FUN! So I’m still rooting for another snowstorm, though I am way in the minority around these parts. Sure some flowers would be nice, I can almost smell them when the sun comes out, and a robin or two singing would be cheery…but new snow would be even more fun for me now!

    I’m outfitted in the Lopapeysa I got last summer in Iceland. Perfect, zips both ways. I’ve got my overalls on so my pants won’t fall down. I’m wearing my Elfin Peak Hat…and a stash busting scarf I made a while back with pom poms. Pom poms, as you may know, make you ski faster.

    Of course you can make a scarf like this out of just about anything. I’m sure you can just whip this baby up without instructions, but sometimes you just don’t want to THINK AT ALL…Just Make!

    For a scarf that measures 5.5 inches(14cm) wide and 43 inches(109cm) long – 45 inches(114cm) when measured with the pompoms –  here’s what I did:

    Yarn: 1 skein Bartlettyarns 2 ply 100% Maine Wool [4oz /200yds (114g/183m)] ; Color “Bracken”. Assorted colors of worsted  weight yarn for pom poms 10 x 9yd (8.25m) lengths.
    Needles: US8 (5mm) 24″ (60cm) or 32″ (80cm) circular needle – due to large number of stitches.
    Notions: tapestry needle, 1 3/4″ (4.5cm) pom pom maker if desired.

    POM POM HAPPINESS SCARF

    Cast on 154 stitches. Knitting flat, knit every stitch every row for garter stitch.

    Knit 48 rows.

    Bind Off. Weave in ends.

    Make 10 – 1.5″ (4cm) pompoms…any color you like! Leave the yarn that you tie the pom pom together with  long, and use those ends to sew them to the edge of the scarf – 5 on each end.

    I like a really chubby pompom so I used about 9 yards (8.25m) for each. I use the “easy wrap” pom pom maker from Susan Bates and I trim my pom poms closely….a little obsessively.

    Now you’re ready – to the woods!

    pompom scarf

    You can have this pattern as a Free Ravelry Download if you can’t keep those complex directions in your head!

    Filed Under: Knitting Tagged With: design, garter stitch, knitting, knitting pattern, Lopapeysa, Maine, Maine wool, scarf

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