Another pair of Gairloch pattern kilt hose

[Verity]

Another very fine job, my friend!

Verity

[Distaff]

You have inspired me to dig out my needles, and get going on a pair!

I haven't knitted in so long, I'll have to look everything up again (like the stretchy cast-on, and turning the heel.... I'll just cross that bridge when I get to it. Kitchner toe will be doable as long as I can find my favorite YouTube tutorial).

Will post again when there is some progress to show.

[Verity]

You have inspired me to dig out my needles, and get going on a pair!

I haven't knitted in so long, I'll have to look everything up again (like the stretchy cast-on, and turning the heel.... I'll just cross that bridge when I get to it. Kitchner toe will be doable as long as I can find my favorite YouTube tutorial).

Will post again when there is some progress to show.

Yes please, Distaff, we can't afford to lose any more of our traditional knowledge. It doesn't matter if the result is not perfect, just keep it alive.

There are a couple of good books out there with suitable patterns. There is some discussion of that in this thread: http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...ks-hose-98333/

Verity

[Tobus]

You have inspired me to dig out my needles, and get going on a pair!

I haven't knitted in so long, I'll have to look everything up again (like the stretchy cast-on, and turning the heel.... I'll just cross that bridge when I get to it. Kitchner toe will be doable as long as I can find my favorite YouTube tutorial).

Will post again when there is some progress to show.

Wonderful! I'd love to see more people get involved (or reinvigorated) in knitting, especially for traditional patterns. Like Verity said, it needs to be kept alive.

What got me into knitting was the desire to make kilt hose for myself that I couldn't find on the commercial market. Having a custom pair commissioned is very expensive, with long wait times. Being an engineer and long-time DIY'er, I figured it couldn't be that hard if so many people do it. And it isn't! There's just a learning curve to get through, and then lots of time spent knitting and purling to refine the movements (just like playing a musical instrument or anything else). Obviously, I'm no expert at it, but it's very satisfying to be able to make my own socks, hats, and other items to my own custom specifications. Plus hand-knit items have their own character.

And to be honest, I've gotten to the point where I can't just sit down on the sofa and idly relax, or watch television, or play on my phone. I get antsy and want to pick up my needles. I believe I've found the zen of knitting, and it provides me both mental and physical relaxation. So if I'm sittin', I'm knittin'. And always planning my next project. I have a few more in mind to recreate historical patterns or examples, but I'll post about those later.

[stickman]

Glad you found your zen. Mine is/was carving sgian and dirk handles. I don’t know what I will do with them all now that I don’t make blades much anymore. You are doing so good with your sittin’ n nittin’ I enjoy seeing your work.

[Distaff]

I am using the hard wearing 5-ply 100% wool Frangipani in the Cordova color, more or less fingering weight. Stainless steel sharp Hiyas, fixed, in either the 32 or 40 inch cord, US1/2.25mm. Magic loop.

My usual cast-on with 72 stitches (I need a better cast-on, but wanted to just get started for this trial run). Didn't do a swatch test, but know from experience with ganseys on these needles and with this yarn, that 72 should be about right for a below the knee cuff. (Hate swatching - those patches don't reflect the actual knitting, and don't produce much useful information. I NEVER expect to get the piece right the first time, anyway.)

I knit Continental, so the pearls get a bit big and sloppy if not paying attention. Took Crafty's class on combination knitting several years ago, and may use that on further socks (forgot about it). It does help, but finger memory habits are hard to break.

Also, I have long dpn's and a waist pad, and done some English right handed throw. That would be the traditional way to knit these. I am very slow and clumbsy with that method, but the fabric is more even. Because hose are smaller projects than a sweater, there is more room for experimenting and working on alternative techniques.

I have a gansey in the works that needs the second sleeve to finish it (started about three years ago, which is why I haven't knitted in so long). Since I can't find that project anywhere, I can work on these socks guilt free. That UFO will show up eventually....

[Verity]

So glad you're getting started, Distaff! You will probably find that doing two-colour work is easiest in the round (that's the nice thing about hose, you never have to work a design in the flat from the wrong side) and with one colour on the 'continental' hand and the other colour on the 'English' hand. I like to keep my background colour on my left hand and do the pattern with my right.

Verity

[Distaff]

So glad you're getting started, Distaff! You will probably find that doing two-colour work is easiest in the round (that's the nice thing about hose, you never have to work a design in the flat from the wrong side) and with one colour on the 'continental' hand and the other colour on the 'English' hand. I like to keep my background colour on my left hand and do the pattern with my right.

Verity

Have done some two color work - mittens and a nordic sweater. (Absolutely love Fair Isle, but I'd rather buy it than try to knit it!)

Mostly, I've worked with one color gansey type textured motifs in a single strand of yarn. I try to keep the number of things that can go wrong, to a minimum.

So, for these hose, I'll be combing through photos of solid color hose in this forum to examine texture patterns. I want my hose to look like traditional kilt hose, and not a sweater worn by a herring fisherman.

[Tobus]

So, for these hose, I'll be combing through photos of solid color hose in this forum to examine texture patterns. I want my hose to look like traditional kilt hose, and not a sweater worn by a herring fisherman.

Have you done cables? I haven't yet, but will be adding it to my repertoire once I get past the honeymoon period with colourwork. This is a pair of hose I commissioned about 14 years ago with cabling all over, although it does somewhat resemble a fisherman's sweater!

You may also be interested in this: https://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter07/PATTtoirneach.html The legs are just ribbed, but there's an interesting texture pattern to the cuff. You could probably apply that to portions of the leg as well.

[Tobus]

I am using the hard wearing 5-ply 100% wool Frangipani in the Cordova color, more or less fingering weight. Stainless steel sharp Hiyas, fixed, in either the 32 or 40 inch cord, US1/2.25mm. Magic loop.

My usual cast-on with 72 stitches (I need a better cast-on, but wanted to just get started for this trial run). Didn't do a swatch test, but know from experience with ganseys on these needles and with this yarn, that 72 should be about right for a below the knee cuff. (Hate swatching - those patches don't reflect the actual knitting, and don't produce much useful information. I NEVER expect to get the piece right the first time, anyway.)

Wow, a 72-stitch cast-on with 2.25mm needles would be way too tight for me, and I have fairly narrow calves compared to most adults. On my first pair of Gairloch hose, I did the recommended 78-stitch cast-on for the cuff, using 3.5mm needles for fingering-weight, and still didn't like how much the ribbed cuff had to stretch. I mean, it fits, but I like my cuffs to be more bulky with the ribbing still having some play, rather than stretched taut. So on my second pair (shown in this thread), I went ahead and cast-on the same number of stitches I was going to use for the pattern (which in this case was also 78 stitches, but using worsted weight yarn on 3.75mm needles). I think I like it better. I wear garter ties under the cuff anyway, so I'm not relying on the ribbing to hold the sock up. I'll be curious to see how yours come out.

So, what kind of cast-on did you use? I've tried a whole number of them in my earlier sock projects and I've landed on the long-tail cast-on, using a reverse long-tail in the mix for ribbing. Basically, when casting on a ribbed cuff with 3x3 ribbing like this one, I cast-on 3 stitches with the regular long-tail method (for knit stitches), then reverse for the next 3 (for purl stitches). It gives a nice krinkly end that follows the ribbing pattern. In my last photo of the original post, I intentionally showed the end of the cuff with it unfolded to show how nicely the cast-on edge follows the ribbing. This has worked really well for me, and I'm sticking with it. But I'm always curious what others do, and how it works for them. I'm always willing to try something new and learn better ways!

(Oh, and I hate swatching too! I'd rather just start the project as the swatch. If I get a couple of days into it and it's not coming out like I want, I'll frog it and start over. But if it does work out, I've saved myself the time of a separate swatch.)

I knit Continental, so the pearls get a bit big and sloppy if not paying attention. Took Crafty's class on combination knitting several years ago, and may use that on further socks (forgot about it). It does help, but finger memory habits are hard to break.

I've done some combination knitting, and it does help tighten up the purls. Sometimes it's best to just do it on the first or last purl in the ribbing, not all of them. But lately I just take the time to give my purl stitches a tug after I've made the stitch and transferred it to the right needle, to take up the slack. I can actually make them accidentally too tight doing that, so I have to be careful to just tug it, not yank it.

Just for laughs, I thought I'd post these pics. My Olde English Bulldogge, June, gets frustrated when I spend hours knitting and not paying attention to her. First she will put her big sloppy face in my knitting, and if that doesn't work, she plops her big ol' paw on my arm to say, "Hey! Pet me!"