Wednesday, May 2, 2007

Off to a slow start...

Looks like everyone is off to a good start, either early or on time. I still haven't cast on yet. DH did manage to print out the Luna Moth pattern and gave it to me last night. Yay! :-)

This will be my very first shawl, so I'm leaning towards using a WW yarn to help me stay motivated. So I'm thinking of cast on with HW in Red Maple, which I have 4 balls of. I hope it's enough. Of course it helps to know I have Sandra to fall back on; she says she has Red Maple HW in her stash.

I haven't figured out which needle size to use. US8 or US10? The pattern says US9, a size I don't have. I guess I need to try both and see. Or maybe just jump in with US10 and see what comes of it.

The pattern says to use a US H crochet hook for the provisional cast on. My one and only crochet hook is a US G. I don't think that should make any difference. I've been meaning to pick up a few more crochet hooks in some other sizes (especially smaller since I seem to be heading in that direction). Do you guys feel strongly about crochet hook brands as you do about knitting needle brands? Or are they all the same?

I've been working on a lace scarf recently and was going cross eyed looking at the row pattern instructions. Then it dawned on my that I could use that "lace book" thing which I had used a couple years back. I totally forgot about that. I've been dumbed down over the years, lol. It's only 10 rows of instructions for the Luna Moth shawl, so I think it'll be easier for me to jot those row-by-row instructions onto index cards. That way I know I'm following the right instructions instead of straying off to an adjacent row's instructions.


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6 comments:

Having a Knit Fitt said...

You should be fine doing the provisional cast on with the smaller crochet hook. As far as knitting needle size goes, do you tend to knit loose, tight or to gauge? If loose, you might try the 8 first. I am a loose knitter and had to go down 2 sizes to make gauge for my Moonlight Sonata. If you usually knit to gauge, you might try the ten since lace is often knitted on a larger needle than the yarn ball band calls for.
Cate

kellygirl said...

Go, Marie, go! Highland wool is very forgiving. I'm sure that you could go with 8's or 10's and have a nice result. I did the horseshoe lace portion of the aran lace shawl on 8's and it looks fine. If you are a tight knitter, I'd go with the US10. (My knitting is a bit loosey goosey.)

CatBookMom said...

Don't worry about the crochet hook styles; there are differences, but they aren't an issue for simple chains and catching dropped stitches. If you're going to be doing much at smaller gauges like fingering, get a D or E; for middle gauges, like worsted yarns, your G will do fine. For really bulky yarns, you might want an I or J.

Whatever size you use, make your chain stitch fairly loose, so you will be able to pick up the loop 'in the back' as easily as possible.

LisaW. said...

Marie, I'm using 10s in HW for the SunRay and it looks great so far! (but i'm known for tight knitting too!) Hooray for a pattern decision. I can't wait to finish SunRay so I can start Luna next. Happy knitting!

sk said...

You will love HW, it is beautiful soft yarn and warm also. Looking forward to see your shawl. SK

Grace said...

i am using 9's but if they hadn't been free I would have used 10's with no problem