will 2 balls be enough?

ok, so...i have 2 balls of ksh and i'm sort of worried that i might run out. i have a 36" bust, but am planning on making one size smaller. also, i'm going to knit it in the round, which should use less yarn also.

do i have a shot or should i just suck it up and buy three new balls?*

*i purchased these 2 balls at a store-closing sale, so i'm pretty sure i won't be able to get the same dye lot.

Making some progress - done with the one side....

Whew. I am done with the first side. I feel like I have the hang of the pattern now, and I am hoping to whip up the back up this weekend. I really want to wear the Butterfly at least once before it gets cold.

Anyone have any tips on blocking lace???

Ann Marie

butterfly in the round

aside from keeping in mind that i'll only be working on the right side and, therefore, need to change the wrong side row direction to account for that, does anyone have any comments / suggestions for working butterfly in the round? i haven't started yet (still waiting to get my needles), but i'm thinking that working it in the round just makes more sense for me.

a little worried!

Looking at all of the butterflies.I am a bit worried that mine looks too fine. what do you think? Or am a I just being paranoid?

My Butterfly is starting to break the cocoon....

I started the Butterfly inspired by Domesticat
So I bought the the Rowan Magazine and the yarn(the color is is shade 582)and fell in love.I already finish the fringe and started on the body. It's still kinda difficult but I am getting there...I am glad I can join so I can share my progress with you.

What's going on.

So let me show you where I've got to.






Oh, yes, that's right. I can't. Because the digital camera has hidden itself so very well that we might as well call it lost. Except that I refuse to do that. This camera has been our faithful companion for the past eight years. It has illustrated my first year of blogging. It... it... it had better bloody turn up soon or I'm going to have a small fit.

If I had a camera, I could show you the two yarns that could be Butterfly. KSH in a sort of lilac color that I'm not that fond of or 100% silk Andrea in a wonderful greeny-grey-blue combination. The KSH is, after all, KSH and I'm worried about knitting Butterfly without the mohair haze. And purple is not a bad color for me, but this purple is a little light. Here's a picure of it that I borrowed (the picture! not the bandwith!) from some yarn site. It's called Dewberry.
Knit up, it would be pretty. Right? And I have just enough (probably) for the tank, which is what I want to knit, because (let's be real here) where am I going to wear a KSH dress? To do laundry?

I have enough Andrea to make a whole dress (which I don't really want to make) and so, though I like the color better, I would worry about what to do afterwards with half a skein of Andrea.

I have, in the interests of full confession, knit about three rows with the KSH. It would be fine. It's just the color! But I might grow to love it, right? Right? I don't have money for yarn right now and I don't want to buy more yarn. I want to knit with what I have and this is what I've got.

Thoughts? Mallets? Lost cameras?

Francesca (Stuntmother)

Spot the Mistake

Hello! This is my first time posting here. I thought I'd let you know what I've done so far. I'm knitting the vest version of Butterfly, using Kidsilk Haze in "Trance". This isn't really a color that I'd normally choose for myself, but I had it in my stash, and I actually really like it. I've knitted the frill for the back (this was a painful process - I had to lock myself in a room with no distraction to get it done), and I've picked up stitches to start knitting the body for the back. But, can you see what's wrong here?

That's right, I picked up the stitches for the body from the wrong side of the frill. It took me forever to notice that I'd done this, too (in fact, it took taking a photo of it, where I couldn't work out which side should be 'up'). I couldn't really believe I'd done it.

Since making this mistake, I've slowly ripped back (I'll never make this mistake again - undoing Kidsilk Haze is a special kind of punishment), and I've picked up (on the right side this time), and have got back to where I was before. Much better.

Argh

I have just been away for a week and had great plans for my butterfly. It didn't happen I managed six patterns of the frill and that was it. The non knitters and the children just dont understand about pattern counting. I would leave room and they would follow me either to talk or to eat apples in my ear! I gave up because it wasnt restful and I was in danger of poking someone really hard with a knitting needle. Oh well only a couple of weeks until school starts back maybe i can have a go then.

hi, everyone!

i'm so glad that there's a knitalong for this. i've been lusting after it ever since seeing it on a few blogs, and i just couldn't resist when a yarn store by me had the ksh for 40%. i ended up buying it in majestic, which is nowhere near as washed out as it looks in this picture.



i just ordered rowan 37 today, and will be swatching for it once i get the magazine. after that, i'm planning on ordering some of those super-pointy knitting needles from knitpicks to use, since they look like they'll come in handy. if i can find some cool beads (how many / what size does the pattern call for? i'm only knitting the vest version.), i'll nab those, too.

i'm hoping to finish this up in time for a wedding (in mid-october), but we'll see about that, since i'm also working on a few other projects for myself and some xmas knitting.

eta: ok, so...before purchasing these (reasonably-priced) knitting needles, i was wondering if anyone could tell me how useful super-pointy needles usually are for knitting lace. thanks!

My So-Called Progress

Well, I wound a skein into a ball which I lovingly fondle at least 50 times a day. I photocopied the pattern, enlarged the graph, placed them in sheet protectors and gaze longingly at the Butterfly picture at least 100 times a day. I read about your progress and am Butterflying Along with You vicariously as I knit on deadlined work - which is actually threatening to kill someone.


I am with you in spirit and will join you in the wool in the next couple of weeks. Knit a little stitch for me!

I can't believe it. I am done with the hem frill:)

In what might be a minor miracle, I am done with the hem. I am so excited. Thank you so much Wannietta for starting this Knit-A-Long, or I am sure that this yarn would still be sitting lonely in the closet. I am going to string the beads tonight, and I will get started on the body tomorrow. From what I have read, the body is easier then the hem. Let's hope so:)

Ann Marie- You Rock.

3 Repeats into the hem frill.



I am making use of your excel chart Ann Marie. Thank you. I appreciate it greatly. Without it I would probably have messed up the lace pattern a lot more than I did with the cards.

It is much easier with index cards. I dont know why I haven't always knit lace with index cards. I think I like using them even better than charts! Actually, how about the best of both worlds and maybe I could make up chart like index cards, just for one row at a time...

The possibilities- hmm.

Anyway, It may seem silly to be taking pictures so early but seriously, this is the most intimidating project I have ever knit, and I need to celebrate all the little successes.

Krista

I'll Butterfly Along with You

I just joined this KAL and am excited to start this. I managed to pick up some Kid Silk Haze & Rowan #37 from a LYS that is sadly going out of business. I've knit with KSH before, so I know it's going to be a slow project, but the finished result is worth it!

I was originally going to make the vest, but I was wondering how many balls of KSH I would actually need. The pattern indicates 3, but I've been reading that it's taken less than 2 for what looks like is the same length. For those of you that have made it with KSH or planning on making it, how much yarn did you get?

I'm also looking at making the dress instead... To bead or not to bead...

Decisions, decisions...

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Lace Pattern

I'm working on my swatch (yes, we have the fastest AND the slowest knitters in North America in this knit-along), and well, my "lace" looks nothing like the pretty diamonds of butterfly. How many rows should I have to work before I start to see the pattern? I'm worried that I may be doing something wrong, but I've been following the charts exactly (at least I think so). I'm also gaining stitches, so I think I must be doing something wrong... but I sure can't figure out what!

Oh, and what is the best decrease to do for the "dec 2" step? It doesn't specify.

Repeats in Hem Frill

I am in a quandry over how many repeats to do in the hem frill. I have 14 right now. I have read that the Butterfly will stretch like crazy.

If I pull on the lace a bit, the hem measures out to 42 cm. (I think that I am going to make the XS.) Plus, you stretch it when blocking to enable you to see the pattern clearly, correct??

Thanks! Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

Ann Marie

Crochet method of attaching beads

Hello,
Has anyone ever used the above? Some knitters have mentioned that they have used crochet hooks to attach the beads for the Rowan Butterfly and have said that it was easier.....
Thanks!

Tips on Lace Knitting?

Hi ladies,

This is my first lace knitting project, and while I don't think there is anything difficult about k2togs and YOs, last night when starting my swatch, I was having a very hard time keeping my place on the chart. Do yall have any tips to offer on how to keep up with the stitches you've knit? I thought about making a copy and marking each stitch off, but to do this for the whole dress will take a lot of time, paper, and ink, I think! Surely there is a better way.

Oh by the way, my Tsuki yarn? Soooo soft and beautiful. I ended up with a light lavendar color, and it is gorgeous.

Since it is August 1st, I figured that I could post:)

In case anyone needs it, I put the directions for the hem frill into Excel. I copied the pattern, but it was still driving me crazy trying to follow the directions for the hem frill. I put each step in a vertical format so that I could slide an index card down as I went along.

I have used it for a couple of repeats, so I know it is correct. If anyone would like a copy, you can e-mail me at anngilchrist@yahoo.com.

Thanks!!