6 reasons to swatch
We all know that we should swatch before every project. But most of us don’t. Myself included.
Swatching is a tool, just like needles, rulers and books, and not every tool needs to be in every project.
But if I have a question, swatching is usually one of the fastest ways to find the answer. (It’s certainly faster than finishing a whole project.)
I swatch…
- … to figure out how large a piece will be.
- … to see how the final fabric will feel.
- … to clarify a design.
- … to have a record of an idea I don’t have time for at the moment.
- … to try out a color combination.
- … to learn a new technique.
And maybe most importantly I swatch to play. I see swatching as a place to experiment and try new things out with no strings attached.
There are certainly “best practices” when it comes to swatching, but there’s no wrong way to swatch, just plenty of right ways.
This is a snip-it from a larger article in Shawls to Play With, which has 4 patterns and 5 articles all focused around playing and experimenting with your knitting.
A Pile of Yarn
Who doesn’t love a big pile of yarn sitting on their desk?
From top to bottom, left to right:
1. Reywa Fibers “Bloom” (50%/50& yak/silk) colorway ‘Wild Orchid’
2. Koigu “Lace Merino” (100% merino) colorway ‘L3667’
3. Julie Asselin “Merletto” (75% merino/15% cashmere/10% silk) colorway ‘Dapple Grey’
4. Sweet Georgia “Merino Silk Lace” (50%/50% wool/silk) colorway ‘autumn flame’
5. Cascade Yarns “Forest Hills” (51% silk, 49% wool) colorway ’16’ (I did a review of this yarn a couple months ago)
6. Fiberspates “Scrumptious Lace” (45% silk, 55% merino) colorway ‘80502’
I agreed to knit a some lace swatches for my LYS, so I have this pile of lace weight sitting on my desk waiting for me to swatch and play with. yay!
binding off and stitch marker liberation
Managed to finish both projects I was working on last week!
Well, almost finish. They still need some finishing, but the knitting is done.
The shawl is all bound off, and waiting to be blocked.
While the green sweater just needs the neck and sleeves finished off. I know the photo looks almost the same as last week, but I promise the shawl is bound off. I just didn’t grab a picture of it. But binding off does mean I got to liberate all my stitch markers. (yay stitch markers!)
I’m starting to get a pile of knitwear that needs finishing, ends woven in and blocking, so hopefully (fingers crossed) I’ll get that done and snap a bunch of finished object photos soon.
PS: The price of Shawl Geometry 1 and Shawl Geometry 3 will be increasing by a few dollars on Friday evening. You can read more details here. Or buy Shawl Geometry 1 ($23) and Shawl Geometry 3 ($17) now at their original prices.
