My New Pets
I was hesitant about publishing anything on the tenth anniversary of Sept. 11. But, I've been making these butterflies, and I thought, maybe, it would be nice to have something whimsical that could bring a little cheer to a room.
Needle size on this project isn't crucial. I used #6 needles. They should be either double-points or circular, even though you will be working back and forth, for the finishing steps. The final piece is about 5 inches across. A little big to wear, so I call them my pet butterflies.
I have been thinking about making butterflies every since I made the Anti-Pinch Shamrock Pin for St. Patrick's Day. I felt I had the basic construction down, but there were problems I had to solve, too.
I wasn't sure how to make the body of the butterfly and I wasn't sure how to shape the wing well.
When I saw Laylock's Shawl Knitting Cheat Sheet, it kind of clicked for me. I had used eyelets to shape knitting before, but I hadn't thought of it the way I think of it now. I realized that I could mold the outer shape of the upper wings with just a few yarn overs. I tried it and it worked. I also saw a way to simplify the finishing steps by picking up stitches.
For the body, I realized one day that I could use glass beads both to secure the ends of the loose wires for the wings and create a body structure. A few days later, I came down with an illness and ended up being home sick for almost a week. I didn't have the attention span to tackle anything large or heavy, so I wrote up some notes and made the first of these little guys. I have to say, I was pretty delighted. The beads I used to finish the top of the body actually look a lot like eyes and gave the critters a lot of personality.
Chat
Sally Melville is so awesome! I loved talking with her. We had a few moments where the sound quality wasn't perfect, but I hope you'll hang in there.
Links
Sally Melville's Website
Sally Melville's Blog
You can find out more about the Einstein Coat here.
The Ravelry page for the Einstein Coat
The Knitting Experience: Book 1, The Knit Stitch
The Ravelry page for A Gray Cardigan
Threads Magazine ed. note - They used to have knitting patterns, but now the magazine is dedicated to sewing.
The Ravelry page for Center-Panelled Vest by Sally Melville and Caddy Melville Ledbetter
