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THE DORMANI YARN
VOLUME 6 ISSUE 1
1st JANUARY 2006RE-INVIGORATED
I trust you had a great Christmas and wish you a very creative 2006. Hope you didn’t have too many goodies over the break. Now however it’s time to check our machines over - give them a little bit of TLC! Out with the oily cloth for that wipe over of carriages and needles to keep everything moving smoothly and do not forget the needle retainer/foam bar. It’s one of those much ignored pieces of our machines but without this we simply cannot knit or at least not very easily. Your needles should be flush down on to the bed, if there is a space under them you may need to replace the bar for all the creative projects ahead during the year. If you are not going to be using your machine for a month or so get into the habit of removing the foam bar and let it sit on top of the machine to rest and spring back - after all it is working all day and night while it is in the machine even if you are not knitting. We do have stock of both BROTHER and SINGER foam bars available at $33 each - Full Dormani Buyers club members less your discount off this figure. To cut down on postage for country or interstate members why not ask around club to see who else need a bar and place just one order - then share the postage.
BIG YEAR
2006 promises to be a huge year for machine knitters with seminars and festivals galore for those who want to take the opportunity to attend at least one. April 1st and 2nd will see the WA seminar with local and interstate tutors sure to excite the creative minds of new and experienced knitters alike.
Victoria are conducting their seminar on May 27th and 28th - which I am fortunate enough to be attending for the first time this year so am really looking forward to that, my topics for that are TRIFFIC TEXTURE - THE MISSING LINK - GO WITH THE FLOW, heard glowing reports of previous events in that state.
If you want to travel a little further a field then a must would be the NZ festival from 27th June to 1st July - this is just a brilliant coming together of knitters which I can highly recommend. The number of competitions and entries into same was a real eye opener when I was there in 2004.
Now as if that wasn’t enough NSW are also having a seminar - which I believe is scheduled for August but I don’t have firm details of this so contact the association in that state for more information.
There really are no excuses to miss out on attending at least one of these informative and friendly gatherings, apart from the inspiration provided by the tutors there is always the opportunity to catch up with friends and enjoy a cuppa and a chat. Hope to see you at one of these functions at least.
If you want to really fill the dance card up then start planning now for the Queensland seminar in 2007!! Will give more details as they are available.
Please make every effort to support our craft in whichever state - without the ongoing support of our associations the future for machine knitting will not be as exciting.
NEW SHIPMENT
It’s good to be able to say that our shelves are restocked and looking pretty full again for the coming season. Our shipment of yarn ex UK has finally arrived and was delivered into the studio after the new year and all the cones are unpacked and looking very tempting and colourful. Many of you who receive the newsletter are located in the country or even interstate so do not have the chance to just ‘pop in’ and look through the studio and make yarn selections personally so thought you may like to see just what Dormani Yarns is all about - following are a couple of photos - it’s like a lolly shop for knitters!!
NEW YARNS AND SHADES
In the yarn shipment were 2 new ranges which I believe will prove to be very popular plus there were new colours added to a couple of other ranges - all so exciting!!
TWISTER - new variegated yarns are always sought out and twister will fit that bill perfectly. These types of yarns mean you can knit in classic stocking stitch yet still produce a garment that has its own unique look and appeal. Twister is a 4ply pure merino wool available in 10 wonderful combinations - each shade has 3 different tones running through it to produce the effect, be it very subtle or quite dramatic there is a shade to appeal to all tastes here. This is also very well priced with a 500gm cone of 2300 meters retailing for just $34.50. See shade card or call in to DY studio.
OFELIA - has to be seen to be believed - a 3ply yarn with a blending of 80% acrylic and 20% mohair it gives a really soft finish and is easy to knit, I have been sampling this yarn and found a light steam only on the purl side gave best results - allowing the fabric to set yet maintaining the oh so soft handle. Do not be put off by the mohair content, at only 20% you have the finish but not the problems normally associated with pure mohair. This will knit well for those lightweight knits [I can envisage a classic twin set!] But will be outstanding when used for wraps and poncho’s etc. For those who attended the “thinking inside the square” demos in Vic/NSW this will give lots of options. Ofelia is very well priced at $29.95 per 500gm cone as I’m sure this will go a very long way - see shade card for colours
NEW YARNS AND SHADES (cont)
GRIGNA has increased the colour range with more solid options, as you can see from the card there are bold or muted choices in this wonderfully textured yarn. Cool to wear as a top [I have 3 shirts in this yarn and just love to wear them] or push some boundaries to create a suit or dress with Grigna - you are almost guaranteed a comment every time you wear it - just so unique!!
In addition there are a number of new shades in SUPERSHEEN - ever so versatile - turquoise - saxe - khaki - yellow - chocolate - gold - emerald - aqua - aubergene - rust. This is ideal as the 2nd yarn in thread/punch lace, will strand together nicely, or use as the backing for plating to mention but a few ideas. This is $20.90 per 450gms cone which has excellent yardage.
OH SO GIRLY
It is the season of all things feminine, lots of drape and cool classic shapes, and all of this style we can achieved on our beloved machines however as knitwear designers [ which we all are ] we want to bring just that little bit extra to our pieces. The following hem is ideal for lightweight summer tops - is wonderful for after 5 - or use it simply to lift an otherwise plain garment. Details are for a picot hem followed by the stripe and bobbles but it would work equally well as a regular hem or with a double crochet cast on edge. In fact don’t restrict this to the edge of your garment it would also work in the body of your garment and would look stunning if incorporated into a sideways knit. It is easy to do so the challenge for you is to look at yarns - textures - colours etc. Contrast colours will give a sharp visual impact but by using very similar tones you will still have the interest but the overall design will be much more subtle and after using it for the edge of your knit you could carry the concept through by adding bobbles at intervals through the body - now don’t assume that bobbles translate to winter ski gear - knit them in fine yarns to give definition - they need to balance or even be finer [possibly sheer] than the actual knit.
Sample knitted in Yeoman Panama haze/purple/lime - Bring to WP 59 Ndls. Using WY cast on and knit a few rows. 1row ravel. MY MT-2 knit 4 rows. Transfer every alternate St to adjacent Ndl, leaving empty Ndls in WP. MT knit 1 row. Mt-2 knit 4 rows. Form hem by picking up Sts from first MY row above ravel. MT MY knit 2 rows. C1 knit 2 rows. MY knit 4 rows. C2 knit 2 rows. MY knit 4 rows. Counting from left miss 3 Sts and form first bobble. Bobbles are made over 5 Sts. with a space between of 11 Sts. Hand knit the 5 bobble Sts for 5 rows using C1. Pick up the outer Sts of the bobble from the first row and hang onto Ndl directly above - this will help close the bobble and make it more defined. Repeat across row. Using MY knit 6 rows.
Repeat the bobbles this time using C2. If preferred you could offset the bobbles - counting from left miss first 11 Sts then commence bobbles.
In the haze sample instead of picking up the 2 outside stitches I have picked up the 4 floats from the first row of the bobble to produce a flat ridge giving another perspective to the trim. These could be increased say to 10 stitches for a more pronounced effect.
OH SO GIRLY(cont)
Variation - turq/peach/lemon - Push 59 Ndls to WP cast on in WY knit a few rows - 1 row ravel. CAR Pull Ndls to HP and latch tool cast on right to left then back left to right. MY MT knit 2 rows. * Counting from left push 6th and every following 16th Ndl to HP - carriage set to hold - MY MT knit 4 rows. Cancel hold. * C1 knit 2 rows. Repeat holding sequence * to * C2 knit 2 rows. Repeat holding * to * MY knit 1 row. Create bobble row as above.
As another variation knit the contrast rows 6 rows deep at MT -2 then pick up from first row to form a fold or pin tuck - lots of added texture here but be sure to reduce tension or the pin tuck will be wider than the body of the work and then will distort your fabric.
FOR SALE
Passap 6000 + u100E extra strippers/combs/weights $1000 ONO
Phone May 9330 0124
Singer - assorted models many with ribbers 313 -321- 322 $250
Phone Max 9524 6049 email pmg.grantham@bigpond.com
Empisal 610 + ribber $80 Singer 323+ribber+intarsia carriage + extras $120
Phone Pam 9277 6832
COMING EVENTS
Westknit seminar April 2006
Victorian seminar May 2006
NZ festival July 2006
Perth Royal Show September 2006
Molly Jones Trophy November 2006
THE DORMANI YARN
DORMANI YARNS © 318 Lord Street Highgate WA 6003
Tel: 08 9328 3050 Fax: 08 93286696
Email: tony@dormani-yarns.com
Web Page: www.dormani-yarns.com
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