Trellis Scarf in progress...

trellis scarf in progress
Originally uploaded by Lynn1144.

Well, I finished the Breeze socks from Knitty.com. I will post photos of them soon, but they are currently in the laundry! They were a little roomy, so I'm hoping a wash will tighten them up a bit. But they are still fun socks. More on those later.

I had two friends who had babies in June! I have completed one project, and must choose another to get started. Pictures soon!

I also started my very first lace project. I chose the Trellis Scarf, from Interweave Knits Spring 06 issue. The pattern is by Evelyn A. Clark. When I was looking over the pattern, I thought, ok, this isn't so bad, I can do this. EXCEPT - the dreaded "7 into 5 cluster". I read that description over and over and over, and still I could not picture exactly what I was supposed to do in my head. I did some internet recon, trying to find any shred of additional instruction on how to do these clusters. I found several blogs talking about them, but no real directions. I did see suggestions to use a size 1 needed. Fortunately, I had one handy, so I decided that it was one of those things you have to figure out by actually trying it. It turned out, I was right. The part that was really confusing me was how I was going to leave the 7 stitches on the needle after knitting them together. Here's how I accomplished the "7 into 5" without too much strife.

1. Work in the pattern to the yarn over just before the cluster
2. Slip the next 7 stitches to the right needle purlwise
3. Pull the left needle forward through the stitches so it can't slip out of the remaining stitches, and just hangs to the back
4. Slip the 7 stitches on the right needle to the #1 needle
5. Now you have a lot of room to slip the right needle in for the knit 7 together, and keep the yarn overs and k7tog somewhat loose so you can continue to maneuver the right needle
6. When the last k7tog is done, slip the #1 needle out and grab the left needle and push it back into the stitches and continue knitting.

Anyway, that's how I'm doing it without much trouble. The pattern talks about using a crochet hook, but I think it's pretty easy with a skinny needle.

I did screw up my initial chart to knit-code translations, and as a result, my first repeat is screwy on the left side. However, I figured it out and fixed it by the 2nd repeat, and now it's looking pretty good. I'm using Malabrigo laceweight 100% baby merino wool in Damask, and I like it. It is very soft and works pretty well. I'm a fan of their other yarns, anyway. I think I like lace knitting. It does take a lot of concentration, especially when you first start establishing the pattern. But I feel that I start recognizing the pattern changes the more I do it, which means its easier to catch mistakes early. More on the baby knitting soon!