Have you tried steam walking the acrylic? Don't let the iron or the steamer touch the acrylic just hover and hold long enough to "kill" the fabric. I've managed to really stretch out acrylic they way and it doesn't bounce back because you're essentially melting the fibers and setting it into a new position.
I agree with a previous comment. When using acrylic, if you don’t want the ribbing at the bottom of the sweater to be tighter, you can just use the same size needle as you used on the body. The sweater looks good on you and this would solve the problem you have with the sweater. Redoing the bottom ribbing with a larger needle should not take very long.
@@hipknithoorayI would love to hear about the wearability of this sweater once you do. The color is gorgeous. Canada is so ridiculously expensive for wool yarn, I’m trying to find some wearable options that doesn’t make me sweat!
Port sweater is lovely. If you aren’t wearing it why not cut the bottom rib and go up a needle size(S) and reknit it. Or, do a French tuck at the front to blouse the front middle. Enjoyed your podcast!
6:24 I’d recommend pairing that yarn with Melted Baby Suri Alpaca from Qing Fibre in the color way “Hero” - it’s a GREAT blue and is incredibly soft. Not sure if it’s currently in stock, but I’m sure it’s returning if not.
Hello, this is the first video I watched from you, I saw you in Vanissia's live stream. Beautiful pieces! I haven't tried drops kidsilk but from what you tell us the lighter colours seem to be softer than the darker ones. (and yes, Andalusian cotton sounds completely correct). 😊
Ah so happy to hear that! And yes, I think that’s what I’m starting to realize as well! After using the drops kid silk I have in stash, I think I’ll stitch to the lighter shades
Great video, Rebecca! Thanks for your honesty/ Sometimes it's difficult to admit a knit is a flop when we've put so much time and money into it. But realizing what went wrong will always help us in the long run. I'm considering frogging one of the Cozy Classic Raglans I made in 2023 because the neck is just way too wide, it's cropped, and it was the first sweater I made after taking a 2 year knitting hiatus so overall it just wasn't the best lol. I've still worn it several times though! Hard to build up the motivation though to rework a frogged project.
Ah thank you ☺️ It is hard to admit a project is a flip but I’ve never once regretting frogging something I didn’t wear/wasn’t happy with! I wonder if you could redo the neckline without having to frog the whole project and undo the bind off and knit the body a bit longer?
I definitely considered that, but overall I think a different silhouette for the yarn would work better. My first vision when I bought the yarn way back in 2020 was to do a broken rib pattern. But I was way too ambitious and was trying to self-draft a pattern and it never went anywhere. When I restarted knitting last year, I just wanted to do something easy by using a pattern I used before and get the yarn out of my stash since it’s no longer my style (it’s Pollen in Malabrigo Worsted, so a rich yellow). I think I’m going to use the Waffle Loop Roll Neck by Other Loops since it’s close to my original vision.
You are such a talented knitter! I think your projects turned out lovely. I really like the hoodie and when you first showed it my jaw dropped because it doesn't look hand-knit at all! Just wear it with the hood down. : ) The final sweater was my favorite.
Eeee thank you! A lot of this yarn I purchased a few years ago when I was a student with a very limited budget and I’m just getting to working with them now 😅 I think my fibre preferences have definitely changed now but it’s still fun to work with these!
Thank you for that interesting video and the effort you put into it! I like most of your garments :-) Haha and btw, I am also not happy with my camisole no.9, also due to the folded down edges which are quite uneven in my project. Nice to see that I am not alone with that experience ;-)
For acrylic, I've heard that steam blocking does wonders! You might want to try steam blocking instead of wet blocking if that's what you did last time.
Oh interesting! I didn’t know there was a difference but makes sense since steam blocking is a higher temperature. I’ll have to try steam blocking the hem and see - thank you for the tip! ☺️
@@hipknithooray with acrylic, you'll have to steam the entire project. you're essentially melting the plastic fibers so they relax, which changes the feel and drape of the finished fabric. that also means that whatever you block is permanent, so be extra sure you're blocking into the final shape.
I purchase them in store at my local Michaels! I believe the cozy wool merino has been discontinued though. The luxe merino seems to be the same composition so maybe a replacement for that yarn with different shades!
So glad I just found you! Appreciate your trying on your FO's instead of the just showing them; makes a huge difference in understanding what a pattern is doing. :)
It was fun to try them all on! I also agree - seeing a garment on the body in video is a lot more telling of how it fits at different areas and the drape is a lot more noticeable. Good reminder to keep doing it in the future for my vids!
For the first time in a long time, I enjoyed a knitting video and got inspired for new projects. Well done! Absolutely love the way you describe the process of knitting a particular item 💖
Drops Kid Silk colours seem to have changed as you have noted! That white core is prevelanet in several of their colours. 2000 I knit a Cumulus in Ash Grey which is now a totaly different to tey current Ash Grey they sell. I would never use it as the only yarn any more as it seems to sag and droop and have less structure. I think it needs another more stable yarn as the second yarn versus 2 strands Drop Skid Slik. Beautiful blouse though, Rebecca!
Omg same! I used ash grey for my october sweater and zipper jacket…knit about a year apart and completely different look! Sad to see the quality has dropped as I really liked the yarn pre 2022! 😅
I love hearing your thoughts on each of the projects! What a stunning collection! I also really like how you experiment with a variety of yarns that more widely accessible. Would love to see a yarn review video from you on your favorite yarns to knit with for different types of projects!
Live and learn when it comes to yarn choices. I’ve never worked with synthetic fibers, but started out with superwash wools. Now I’m totally turned off by them. I don’t like how much they grow when washed and the amount of chemicals used to produce them is a big NO for me and the environment. My favorites are Merino, Alpaca, linen, and wool-silk blends.
Great episode Rebecca! Can’t believe how much you had last year 👏🏻 Shame you don’t like the yarn for the port sweater as it looks great on you. I’m adding that to my list as I love the louvre I have but the details on this one look more interesting. The hood of that hoodie 😂 Agree with you on the lakes tee fit. I think that’s a beautiful design and looks great on you. Nice colour choice too.
Thank you, Sheri! 🥰 the hood really did not turn out hahaha I’m thinking of gifting it to my mom (who has a much smaller head than me 😅) or perhaps frogging it for the yarn. I also love the lakes design - the saddle shoulder is such a nice visual detail and it’s fun to knit up!
It wasn’t too hard but a lot more time consuming! You work also knit the band at the end and pick up the same number of stitches. I explain which video tutorials I used in my last podcast episode as I used a couple kimmie Munkholm videos if you’re interested ☺️
I started test knitting in 2021 and almost all of them I applied to through an open test call! I follow designers on Instagram and/or their newsletters where they usually announce their open test calls. I applied to several before I got my first test knit so while it may take a few tries, many designers like choosing people who have never test knit before as well. I’d also recommend applying for newer/up and coming designers as your chances of being accepted may be higher. Hope this helps!
Yes great idea - I love my split hens haha! Everyone has left such helpful comments to fix my port sweater so I’ll have to definitely reevaluate and make some modifications this year. Thank you ☺️
Have you tried steam blocking the acrylic sweater? I did that and worked beautifully to obtain drape and stretch the ribbings. I proceed by sections, steaming the sweater until it is humid and gently pulling and pinning it in the desired shape. Recently I did that with a Terrazzo sweater, before steam blocking the high turtle neck was very tight and without any draping, while after a little bit of hot steam it bloomed wonderfully. In general for acrylic yarn wet blocking doesn’t work so much, it needs a little bit of heating to reshape the fibers. Just pay attention not to melt it, so do not put the steamer directly in contact with the fabric!
Sometimes it helps alot to increase stitches before starting the ribbing of the hem, Use your gauge to do some maths to know how many sts you should increase to get a hem that has the same width as the body and still knit with a smaller needle size to get a neat professional rib-look. Irina Revo has a tutorial about this and she explains the math as well. Her sweater(s) look great! Good luck!
Just an observation from someone who sews as well as knits...You might try using narrow elastic from the neck to the sleeve seam on the pink sweater, to give more strength to a seam that will be stretched when wearing, due to the weight of the sleeves. You could also use narrow elastic along the bottom of the brown (black) camisole, so that you can get it on.
Hi Rebecca! This is a great video and I like that you share all of the positives and negatives. For your Port sweater out of the acrylic yarn have you tried steam blocking it? I typically use acrylic yarn for crochet and steam block it. the heat kind of melts the acrylic and can allow it to hold its shape more. The sweater is beautiful and I hope you can get some wear out of it