Knitting Through the Emergency

Hello, everyone. You can call me Number Two. I’m here to teach stitch patterns in knitting, as well as making sure that you’re teaching compassion and taking care of yourself, one knit or purl at a time.

I don’t go into much about myself, for privacy reasons, but I use he/him and she/her pronouns. I like who I like, and that’s the end of that.

Here’s basic instructions on How to Knit, and How to Purl.

Tags:

#stitch patterns - basic patterns for stitches that you can use in your work

#projects - more complex projects that leave you with a finished object (fo) rather than a gauge swatch or a stitch sampler

#wip - images of works in progress on the blog

#finished object - a project that is finished complete with photos, could be connected to a project or stitch pattern post

#personal care - reminders or tutorials on how to care for yourself and others

#2 speak - personal messages from myself to my followers

Hello, my crafty companions.

The scarf was well-received. :) Here is a front and back photo for my lovely followers.

Hello, my crafty companions. Number Two here. I figured that since it is Wednesday I would like to give you a Work In Progress of mine that is just about completed. It is a one-skein project, which started out as what was going to be a cowl but has reached a length that is closer to an infinity scarf as I decided I would use up the entire skein on the one project.

This project is going to someone very near and dear to my heart. We always get a little joy when either of us see green plaid, and while this design isn’t plaid, I do think the varying shades of green will be something that is appreciated. It is also a textured piece, allowing for tactile stimulation in the case of overwhelming emotion or stimulation. I followed the “That Nice Stitch” pattern, which you can find on Ravelry for free here. (Note: I am not a pattern tester, nor am I sponsored to share this pattern. I just figured I should give credit where credit is due.)

When this project is finished, I imagine it will be somewhere around four and a half to five feet long in circumference. It is worked flat and then sewed up along the short end for a ring-like shape that should drape over the head twice. Below is a picture of this work in progress!

[ALT ID: An infinity scarf still on dark brown knitting needles. The scarf is done in variegated green with a lot of definition stitches. /End ID]

I hope that this project proves to be an excellent gift. There are a couple of imperfections in it which I shan’t point out less they become obvious to the viewer—but no project is ever truly perfect, regardless of whether you follow the pattern to a T or have the perfect tension or not. Every project is unique and one-of-a-kind because it is knit by hand, a process which is a labor of love and should not be taken lightly.

Do have a good Wednesday, if possible. Be kind to yourself and others, it may be the middle of the week but you’ve come so far already, it would be a shame for you to stop now. Stay crafty, and take care of yourselves.

I know it's been a while since my last post, truth be told a lot has been going on offline and I don't have the same time to knit that I usually had in the past, and my attention span has been struggling.

I don't want to give up on this blog, as I think compassion and knitting are very important, but I'd like some input on what you all would like to see out of this blog. I'm open to suggestions. I probably will not resume Stitch Saturday, as that was stressful to keep up with, but I can start up WIP Weeks/WIP Wednesdays, I can show more in-progress designs or sketches of objects I plan to make.

Ultimately, I want to make a blog that others will care about and want to interact with. I knit for myself, but I post about it to connect with others.

So, dear readers, please let me know what might interest you, and I'll do my best to make it a reality. Sound good?

Just don't leave me shouting into the void. It gets rather lonely.

Hello, my crafty companions. Number Two here. There has been a lot of turmoil in my life recently, lots of moving parts keeping my from doing the posts that I would like to complete in a timely manner. When I stress-knit, however, I find that I don’t necessarily have the heart in me to post as frequently.

Today is Friday, and I thought it might be nice to give you a finished object I have made, as this has been taking most of my knitting time when I am not making gauge swatches for Stitch Saturday.

I have been working on this particular cowl since June, making it one of my longest projects in quite some time. I call it the “Power of the Moon” cowl, hopefully for reasons that will be obvious when you see the cowl yourself.

[ALT ID: A cowl done in deep purple, with yellow and blue sparkles under the ribbed border, followed by yellow-black and blue-black moons, with a glowing blue-and-yellow book in the middle.]

This cowl was the first time I have experimented with Fair Isle knitting—also known as one of the most common techniques to complete knitting color work. The  designs on the cowl all came from the Spellbound Doodle Card Deck made by Pacific Knit Co. (IMPORTANT: I am not sponsored, just a fan of the designs.) I learned quite a bit about weaving in ends in the back of a stockinette work so that they’re not visible on the outside, as well as how to trap floats so that the work doesn’t cinch in on itself when you skip several stitches without using a particular color. This, I learned the hard way, as when I went to use the black on the bottom of the moons, I found there were quite a few skipped stitches and the cowl was being pulled too tight to wear. The length of it is a bit absurd—it’s about as big as my head—but I learned a lot about the process and next time I go to make a cowl I know that I merely need three motifs, rather than five. Overall, despite being a stress knit piece and being more than eager to get it done, I loved the process of making it. As for how it sits? Well, you tell me!

[ALT ID: The back of an individual’s head, with the cowl resting comfortably around the neck.]

Hopefully will be back soon, my crafty companions, either with a Work in Progress or a Stitch Saturday post. Until then, stay crafty, and take care of yourselves.

Hello, my crafty companions. You’ll have to excuse the lateness of the next Stitch Saturday post—sometimes I forget that my youngest sister is still, indeed, a small child, and as such gets sick rather easily. Unfortunately for all of us, she refuses most medicine as all small children tend to do, and the cold turned into a flu that took out most of the house, and with immunocompromised members of the household, that means that there is quite a bit of fuss to be made when the sick are recovering and the caretakers then get sick themselves after the sick have recovered. It truly is like clockwork when our house gets sick, with so many members—but that’s not the point of today’s post. Today, our stitch is

The Sand Stitch

The sand stitch is a two row repeat stitch and the first stitch in this series that comes with a predetermined number of stitches, plus an additional set of whichever number you choose. This is typically shown as “Multiple of [number x] plus [number y] stitches” in books or online. In the sand stitch’s case, you cast on a multiple of two plus one stitch. Cast on any even number of stitches, then cast on one additional stitch, which you will be utilizing in the second row. For the first row, you purl all the stitches, and then on the second row of the repeat, you knit one stitch, then alternate purling one then knitting one stitch all the way down the row. This ends up with a rather interestingly textured fabric where the right side will have columns with little bumps alternating rows, not unlike sand grains, while the wrong side will have no columns and considerably more bumps. As both sides can be worn without everything looking like a hot mess, I hesitate to use the terms “right side” and “wrong side,” but that is the easiest way to differentiate the sides. This fabric, despite being able to be worn on both sides, is not reversible, as it does not look identical on either side. Below are pictures of the right and wrong sides.

[ALT ID: A gauge swatch of the front and back of the Sand Stitch done in yellow-green yarn. /End ID]

This swatch was done with seventeen cast-on stitches (sixteen plus one), and sixteen rows.

In summary:

Pattern - Two row repeat: Purl all stitches of first row. Turn. Knit one, then alternate purling and knitting one stitch all the way back.

Reversible - No

Skill Level - Beginner

Thank you for joining me on this Stitch Saturday, my crafty companions. Stay crafty, and take care of yourselves.

Hello, my crafty companions! We are back on track with Stitch Saturdays, this week, as runaways have been reunited with their parents, there were no expected fireworks displays, and I was able to make a gauge swatch for everyone on time. This week, we’re going over

The American Moss Stitch

The American Moss Stitch is called such, because the Moss Stitch has many variations to the point where any given blog from any given site could be using a vastly different definition of the moss stitch by merely being in a different country. I am particularly fond of this stitch for dishcloths, as the added texture of the stitches is more likely to pick up grime from dishes, while still being cleanable in a washing machine. This stitch requires a four row repeat. You cast on as many stitches as you desire, then alternate knit and purl stitches all the way down the row. The next row, you purl and then knit alternately all the way down your stitches. You repeat that purl and knit pattern for one row, and then return to what you did in the first row, knitting and then purling alternately. The end result is having two “v” stitches stacked on top of two “bump” stitches up and down the fabric, and it will give the fabric a slightly diagonal-looking shape.

The American Moss Stitch is another reversible fabric, and as such will only feature one photo on the blog. You can see it below:

[ALT ID: A gauge swatch of the American Moss Stitch done in yellow-green yarn. /End ID]

This swatch was done with sixteen cast-on stitches and sixteen rows.

In summary:

Pattern - Alternate knitting and purling every stitch on your needle. Turn. Alternate purling and knitting every stitch on your needle. Turn. Repeat row 2. Turn. Repeat row 1.

Reversible - Yes

Skill Level - Beginner

Thank you for joining me on this Stitch Saturday, my crafty companions. Stay crafty, and take care of yourselves.