Yarn on Thursday: Stitch Edition - more reversible S's

The project: Knitting all the stitches in KnittingOnTheNet.com's Stitch Directory.
The yarn: Anything you want. I'm using a Phentex "Monster Ball of Yarn" (32 oz. 100% acrylic), which won't block, but will give good stitch definition.
The needles: Again, whatever you want that goes with your yarn. I'm using my beloved Lantern Moon size 7s, because they're pretty.
Why this is happening: Because lots of people want to learn new stitches this year!

This week's stitches: #38 - Single Chevron, #39 - Spaced Checks, and #40 - Squares In Squares

Okay, I need to get back in the swing of things for this giant yarn-taking-over-my-armchair project. First up, the Single Chevron. This is a "multiple of 8", and this time, I decided to go with two horizontal repeats, rather than three, for sixteen stitches. This means 7 seed stitches before and after the 16 pattern stitches. I did four pattern repeats, with an altered extra row - not exactly Row 1 again - to finish off the swatch. The altered row was *k4, p1, k3; rep from *; end with k4. Because of the extra row, there are five rows of seed stitch before the next swatch.


What I noticed about this pattern: It doesn't curl much at all, so it's acrylic-friendly, and it's quite pretty, to boot. Fast to remember, too. I may try a doll blanket out of it, or... DISHCLOTHS! I bet it would be a nifty pattern for dishcloths... it's also one of the few "fill" stitches that I didn't find really boring, either. It's regular enough that the eye would sort of glide over it if there was more interesting stuff nearby, but it's interesting enough that it could stand on its own. (Think tiny baby sweater... ooooo...) I see myself actually using this one in the near future.

Next, we have Spaced Checks. This one makes me think of dotted Minky, but you probably need fine cashmere to make it that soft! This is a "(Multiple of 10) +2" - as is the next pattern - so 22 pattern stitches it is, with four seed stitches both before and after the pattern stitches. Since it's a ten row pattern, I did two repeats, then repeated Rows 1 and 2 to "center" the swatch. I did six rows of seed stitch before the next swatch.


What I noticed about this pattern: Another easy knit, with a bit of visual interest. Because of the purl blocks, the fabric tries to pull in both ways, so it would really, really need blocking. Again, I'm thinking doll blanket or afghan square. Or perhaps a toddler sweater?

Last, but not least, we have Squares in Squares. This is a "(Multiple of 10) +2" - as is the next pattern - so 22 pattern stitches it is, with four seed stitches both before and after the pattern stitches. Since it's a ten row pattern, I did two repeats, then repeated Rows 1 and 2 to "center" the swatch. I did six rows of seed stitch before the next swatch. Yes, that's exactly what I did for the swatch above, too!


front


Back
What I noticed about this pattern: Reversible, and needs to be blocked. The squares try to disappear in on themselves otherwise!

Now, I did try to take photos of the backs of the first two swatches, too. Evidently, I was on a LOT of antihistamine due to the ridiculously high pollen count here, since I took lovely photos of the fronts again. *Sigh.*

A note on the whole project: Since there are 139 stitch patterns (some are listed under multiple headings), plus 7 different edgings in KnittingOnTheNet.com's Stitch Directory, I'll be trying to do two to three stitches a week, minimum. This should get everyone a goodly number of new stitches by the end of the year, and hopefully get me a blanket. No worries if you "fall behind" or "start late" - this is for fun & education, there isn't *really* a time limit of any sort on it. If you're just discovering this project, this link will take you to the beginning, and this link will pull up all the related entries. Just knit on, and have fun!