Responding to Ravelry Group Comments

I have been thinking a lot about the length of the wrap, how to create more than one wrap out of the yardage you have (to keep or give as gifts). In other words, my goal here is to help you maximize your materials.

I was reading some of the Ravelry group commentary about the wrap and it sounds like folks are grappling with some of the same issues that I did/am. Sharper needles work better (I resorted to my grandmother’s old straight aluminum needles as they are the sharpest I own). And many of the other issues are the nature of the beast. . .

I did not cast on with larger needles myself as I liked the cast on and bind off edges pulling in a bit. The flowers weigh down the ends and create lovely arches between the flowers.

I did not block my wrap as I liked the ruched qualities of the un-blocked fabric.

The larger stitches are just as troublesome as the small ones but for different reasons: large stitches don’t want to slip, no matter the needle or the looseness of the stitches, in my experience, so I found myself moving them rather laboriously down the needle.

Warnings:

Don’t dare put the stitches on waste yarn to hold them as you’ll need a magnifier to get them back on the needle–at least I did! It was a trial I would like not to repeat!

Moving on to Length

I like long wraps. I live in Maryland and our winters are not usually blisteringly cold, but when my neck is cold I feel cold. I often have a scarf on for 8 months out of the year.  I like wrapping a scarf multiple times . . . so, for my latest one, I have opted for a long Gossamer Wrap.

If I have any left over main color, I will make a little cowl. . . same basic recipe, but only work for about 30 inches (76.5cm) before sewing the beginning and end together using a standard mattress stitch. I will end with small gauge stitches and then sew. . . or it would be possible to start with a provisional cast on [here I would use a larger needle. About a 3 (3.25mm)] and then knit the two ends together.

This is a great way to use up your leftover yardage. I am working on an inner petal color cowl right now.  If I want to convert this into an infinity scarf/wrap, I will work until about 60 inches (152.5cm), then, to graft, I will flip the fabric once, twice (as with the Poppy Cowl) before grafting. This way, the wrap will not be twisted when you double it.

The lovely thing about purchasing full skeins is that you can make several wraps with different qualities from the same materials.  Picture a green wrap, even, with the fuchsia seeming to grow out of the knit stitches.

Your Homework for Week 2

Your homework for this week is to continue working on the wrap. Pick a short wrap, a cowl, infinity wrap, or long scarf/wrap and try to reach completion. Please make sure, if you bind off, that you follow my instructions for the sewn bind off. If done according to the instructions, your cast on and bind off should be equally stretchy and have more or less the same appearance. If you use a conventional bind off, you will have virtually no stretch and you will probably be very regretful. If you try to back it out, you will suffer . . . so trust the pattern.

Those who are participating in our Ravelry group, please keep us updated about how long you will be making your wrap and post pictures.

Homework for Next Week

Next week, we will begin to make fuchsias.  I will address issues of attachment in later postings, so please wait, not only for these techniques but ideas on how to attach the flowers and orient them in a way that pleases the eye on different length wraps.