Loom Knit Corkscrews

I have been thinking on corkscrews for some time.  There are a few other tutorials online loom knit corkscrews.  But I have been wanting tight spirals similar to crochet corkscrews that are not limited to the number of pegs on the loom for the length or using lots of decreases.

The other day while looking at a picture of an i-cord, it hit me.  A 2 peg modified i-cord.  Got out a loom and proceeded.  Got it on my second try.  First try, the yarn was not bulky enough for the loom gauge.  Found a heavier weight yarn, and it worked!  Oh happy day!

Had some trouble with my borrowed video camera though.  There is audio static.  Not happy at all...  But it does get better after 10 seconds or so.  I will try to remake the video whenever I can acquire a different camera.

But the video is recorded.  The tutorial is written.  And it's all uploaded to Ravelry in one nice downloadable file here.

Or find the video here.

Enjoy!

Zoe MacLean's Loom Knit Mermaid Tail with the Raised Paving Stitch

How exciting!  Zoe MacLean is very talented!  And she created a new loom knit pattern with the raised paving stitch that I converted for loom knit for a photo prop baby mermaid tail.  Isn't it incredible??

This is knit on the 36 peg round loom so the stitch has been modified just a little to accommodate the peg count of the loom.  She uses 2 strands of DK yarn held together as one.  DK is a 3 weight yarn equivalent to sports or baby weight yarn.

You can find her awesome pattern here.

Fringe (without Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop ...)

So I was a on tear with my Addi King knitting machine the past 2 days.  Among the 12 hats, I made a tube scarf and added fringe.  Which lead to a small quick impromptu video on how I make and attach fringe.

Here is the video!  I hope it helps.  

My newest creation for the humiliation of the children...

Back in the fall while waiting for the bus with my kids, I got the bright idea for a hat.  Took me this long to get it done.

I know.  Classy...  not my best work but this was  fly by the seat of my pants project.  It can be done with knit (needles, loom, machine) or crochet.  It's quite simple.  I made this hat on my Addi King knitting machine.

Make a tight fitting beanie hat in the "hair" color of your choice. Cut long strands of the yarn and add it to the hat like fringe.  I cut my yarn about a yard long then cut it half.  Hooked it on so there were 2 strands per fringe.  Roll the fringe on sponge rollers.  I used 2 pieces of fringe about 1" apart per roller to hold them steady and 16 sponge rollers.  Use however many suits your fancy though.

Viola!

The perfect hat to wear with a housecoat while holding a cup of coffee when waiting for the bus.  You might want to do it in the afternoon when they least expect it.  Or makes a nice hat to wear to Wal-mart.

Update:

Here is a loom knit pattern for the hat including detailed instructions on how to attach "hair".

Curlers Wig Hat

Yarn Usage for Different Loom Knit Stitches

I have a new friend on Facebook!  Hard to believe but true nonetheless...  Say hello to Katie of the Crafty Misu Co.  You can find her at:  Facebook.com/craftymisuco

Well Katie has taken the trouble to work up some swatches to see how much yarn different stitches use.

Here is what she has found out.  Take it away, Katie!

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Alright so for everyone like me who knits on a budget, yarn usage is an important consideration before taking on a new project. Because I wanted to see which stitches have the best ratio between yard efficiency and knitting speed, I tested six stitches to see how much yarn they use (I already know how long they take me to knit, on average):

Measurements are for 5 rounds of knitting on a 12 peg (3/4" gauge) flower loom, counting from the end of the slip knot to the end of the tail of the working yarn:

E-wrap Knit - 136 1/4"
Flat Knit - 97 5/8"
U-Wrap Knit (U-Knit) - 102 7/16"
Basic Purl - 100 1/2"
Figure Eight (All-In-One-Round) - 221 7/16"
Diamond Lace - 225 1/2"

41" of each measurement was the cast-on length, that brings the per-stitch/per-peg measurements as follows:

E-wrap Knit - 2 1/4" ps
Flat Knit - 1 9/16" ps
U-Wrap Knit - 1 5/8" ps
Basic Purl - 1 1/2" ps
*Figure Eight (AIOR) - 3 5/8" ps
*Diamond Lace - 3 11/16" ps

*I will post pictures of the differences between these two stitches as well.

So long story short, you won't see a big difference in the amount of yarn used when you are making small projects with a low number of rows. However, the more rows you knit, the more you will notice that certain stitches use more yarn than others. The flat knit stitch uses the smallest yardage of yarn, and the diamond lace stitch uses the most.

Now for some pictures...

• Shows the 2" tail.
  

• E-wrap cast on - pulled taut but not stretched.

• Figure 8 (all in one round) - You wrap in a figure eight, until there are three loops on every peg, then knit over.

• Diamond lace stitch - You wrap in a figure eight, and knit over those two pegs before continuing. Each peg technically gets TWO stitches per round.

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Thank you, Katie, for all  your hard work and pictures!

Now I would like to add a few of things.  While the flat knit uses the least amount of yarn, it is also the shortest of the knit stitches.  The e-wrap knit stitch is the tallest of the knit stitches.  And the u-wrap knit stitch is in between the 2.  So you will need to keep in mind that it will take more rows using the flat knit stitch to get the same length as with the e-wrap or u-wrap knit stitches.  A post detailing the differences in the different knit stitches is on my list of things to do this year along with learning how to post pictures on here where they all line up properly...

Loom Knit Oval Shapes

Wanting to knit an oval on loom?  Well, look no further!  With a few short rows and picked up stitches, you will be knitting ovals on any loom in any size you want.

This is my first attempt at an oval.  And yes I know what it looks like...  Uh mum...

And this is my second attempt.  It is a little longer in the middle than the red one.

I am writing this so you can make any size oval. There is not a set number to cast on or number of rows.  It can make for a confusing pattern.  I am hoping the video will help clarify everything.  Feel free to ask questions either here or on the YouTube comments.

The width of the oval is double the number of pegs cast on.  So if you want an oval that is 10 stitches across, you need to cast on 5 pegs.  If you want an oval that is 30 stitches across, you cast on 15 pegs.  And so on.  You can use any gauge loom with any yarn weight you desire.

Video links at the end.

Here you go...

K - knit
P - purl
S - slip (skip)
W&T - wrap & turn - lift loop off peg and wrap working yarn around peg from back to front.  Now peg is has 2 wraps or loops on it and working yarn is ready to purl the first stitch on the next row.

I will be using letters for the rows for the garter ridges in the center section and numbers for rows on the end semi/half circles.

E-wrap cast on half the desired width.  You will need to cast on an odd number of pegs.

FIRST SIDE OF MIDDLE SECTION

Row A - S1, K rest.
Row B -  S1, P to last peg, K last
Repeat Rows A - B until you get the desired middle length.  Rows A and B together is 1 garter ridge.

Now we start our short rows for the curved end.

CURVED END SECTION

(*Row 1 - S1, K to next to last peg, W&T next to last peg
Row 2 - P to last peg, K last peg
Row 3 - S1, K to 2 pegs from last W&T, W& T the peg that is 2 pegs from the last W&T  -There should be a peg with only 1 loop between the pegs with the W&T
Row 4 - P to last peg, K last peg

Repeat Rows 3 and 4 until there is a W&T on every other peg with the end pegs only having 1 loop.  So your last repeat will only be having 2 pegs where you slip the first peg and wrap and turn the second then knit the end peg. * Refer to the video for clarification on this.

This shows how the pegs look at the end of the wedge with the W&T.

Now repeat Rows A and B once.)

That is the first wedge of 6 for the semi or half circle end.

Repeat inside the ( ) 4 more times.  Then repeat from * to * once more.  This will give you 6 wedges.  You now have 2 loops every other peg.

Now we are ready to work our garter ridges back down the other side while picking up the side stitch to join the 2 sides.

SECOND SIDE OF MIDDLE SECTION

Row A - S1, K rest
Row B - Place end stitch chain from the other side from the last garter ridge before the semicircle on the end peg.  P to the last peg, K last peg.

Repeat Rows A and B until all the side stitches from the other side have been joined.

Repeat the Curved End Section

There are 2 ways to finish.

Method 1 - Join and Bind Off

Place the cast on stitches back on the loom.
Using the Basic Bind off, bind off.

Method 2 - Bind Off and Seam with Mattress Stitch

Bind off first with Basic Bind off and use the mattress stitch to seam close.

If you wish,  you can sew the 2 little circles close.

I hope this helps!  Please feel free to refer to the videos to help understand what I have written.

Video Links

Part 1 -  Covers introduction and knitting the first side of the middle section.
Part 2 -  Covers the short rows for the first curved end.
Part 3 -  Covers knitting the second side of the middle section and joining the sides together as you knit.
Part 4 -  Covers the short rows for the second curved end, joining for the bind off, and binding off.
Part 5 -  Shows the finished product.

Or play them all on the Playlist.