Additional knitting samples, new skills

I have picked up a lot of new skills during my time in knit. I have learnt how to make ladders and change the width of these ladders, giving the sample a delicacy, making it quite lacey.

I like the linear value the ladders give to the sample but it also means that it looks very soft and delicate and in some ways it is quite organic and I personally think it looks a little bit like spider's webs.

Again, my choice of yarn wasn't the best so I endeavour to redo this sample too. I do like this sample as a stand alone piece however it isn't appropriate with the rest of my work.

I've also learnt how to create lace-holes within my sample (as shown, left). I feel that this also gives a patterned quality to the knitting. It also adds a certain element of delicacy to the piece too. In this particular piece, I've used the two-colour stripe technique in conjunction with the lace-hole technique.

I'm learning to experiment with the domestic machine and the set of knitting skills that I'm learning in the coming weeks. Combining a limited set of skills means that the outcomes that can be made become unlimited and the uniqueness of your samples is down to your own creativity.

 I've also learned to "hook up", this technique gives a ruched effect.

I like the flexibility of this technique and you can be quite regimented and count which stiches you want to hook up, or you can do this in a more free way giving a less predictable effect to the sample.

Again in this particular piece, I have combined the two colour stripe and hooking up technique to create a ribbing effect.