or How Fibonacci Numbers, Frogging, and Finishing Converged

Eight years ago I purchased a 14.1 cu ft upright freezer to contain the pig and lambs I raised that year for food. As the chops and bacon were eaten, the shelf space vacated by the protein was filled with fiber, an ironic but welcome use of my shiny new appliance.  Freezing is my frontline solution for halting real or suspected moth activity in anything yarn related.

First a moth-nibbled pair of mittens took the space freed up by the Christmas leg of lamb, and then a newly holey sweater was packed in the pork shoulder spot. Over time, semi-precious fiber and hand painted skeins were parked in cold storage for safekeeping, on the shelf above yarn legitimately undergoing insect detox. What was left of the ground pork was buried in the back corners.

I replenished and rummaged through my frozen stash intermittently, but last month the urge to reconnect with the goods and reduce carbon footprint converged. Time for the freezer to get a real job. From now on, suspect fiber could do its cold storage time on the porch in winter. Truth be told, I knew there were skeins of bison, cashmere, and two skeins of local handspun alpaca lurking therein whose time had come to be Christmas gifts.

The freezer was duly advertised and spoken for. A few days later two knitting friends came by to step and fetch it for me during my broken ankle convalescence. Retrieving the yarn from cold storage was at the top of the designated chores list. Their energy and humor hit that freezer like sheep aimed at a bale of fresh hay. Frozen yarn commenced thawing on the living room floor within minutes of their arrival. The aroma of hickory smoked ham and freezer burn filled the room, along with the oohing and aahing that always accompanies sizing up a fiber stash. Within a few days all the goods were re-acclimated to room temperature, refreshed, and re-stored in clear, plastic bags.

Time to knit. Of the two skeins of alpaca, a manly dark grey and a cinnamon, I chose the cinnamon for its greater yardage, and paired it with my cornflower dyed singles for added color and stability. Alpaca, lacking any natural elasticity, likes to grow, and the single strand of my merino/mohair blend would add bounce and structure to the fabric.

My object was to whip up a scarf that would complement a dark brown jacket. Or was it navy? I cast on 18 sts on US 7 needles. I’d hardly knit 6 inches and the fretting began: what if the colors didn’t match my son’s coat; already the scarf looked too skinny, and wasn’t the gauge a wee bit tight? More knitting and growing unease. At best, it might be an oversized ascot. But so handsome, so soft and so not quite right.

What to do?  I took a break, hoping for an inspiration before the inevitable ”frogging”, and there, hanging on the half-bath wall, found my solution in a framed poster of pinecones, flowers, pineapples, all examples of Fibonacci numbers in nature.

Fibonacci numbers are a sequence that begin 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144 and continue ad infinitum. Each new number is the sum of the previous two. As the numbers increase, dividing the larger one by its smaller neighbor yields a number that approaches the golden ratio or mean, approximately 1.6180339887. Fibonacci numbers, alone and in tandem with the golden mean continue to emerge as a force of nature in all manner of inquiries into science, math, religion, and art and music. The sequence also provides a universal guidepost for creating work that is harmonious and aesthetically pleasing. Fibonacci numbers helped Beethoven compose his Fifth Symphony and they are also present in our DNA; they couldn’t hurt this scarf.

My awareness of the numbers comes through my observations of, well, everything outdoors: the spirals in a pine cone, how the number of petals in many flowers correspond to the sequence, the arrangement of buds on trees and plants. For instance, each grouping of scented buds on a lavender stem numbers 8. Consciously or by chance, the numbers moderate the arrangement of my world.  Five colors in my design work is subtly more pleasing than four; a survey of my sheep records over 20 years revealed the winter flock census was often 13 or 21 or 34.

The Pattern

I frogged the scarf onto the ball winder, and started over.  The architecture of the Fast & Easy, Pleasing Peace & Harmony Scarf 2010 is now as follows: cast on 21 sts on US 8 needles, or size needles to create a gauge which makes the best use of your materials. The pattern is a 3-stitch rib  *k2, p1* on every row: simple enough to knit almost without thinking.

Choose 3 colors. I used the “manly” gray (80 yds) and cinnamon light worsted weight alpaca handspun (120 yds), each paired with a strand of cornflower singles weight in an equal amount. * Adding the gray yardage insured a longer scarf with a striping option. The scarf will complement any of my son’s jackets.

I counted each “back and forth” row as a unit of 1 instead of as 2 rows to guide the striping sequence. Suggested striping sequence: 16 rows (8 repeats), 10 (5 repeats), 6 rows (3 repeats) and so on serendipitously. Knitting a few longer runs of each color gave it space to shine on its own, i.e. 42 rows (21 repeats) with shorter stripes in between. Wrap the color not in use under the other along the edge to avoid loose ends to weave. The finished length is approx. 66 inches. * I pre-wound the singles weight yarn and then plied it with each color on a ball-winder.

Trusting the numbers and loving my chosen materials, I was able to sink into the flow and rhythm of each stitch, to concentrate on the love, gratitude and admiration I feel for my son. I enjoyed repeating this process with the same intention, using the bison and some pure merino, to create a scarf for his wife Jill. Doesn’t every knitted gift carry with it the tenor and circumstances of its creation?

By paying attention to the numbers, the knitting became peaceful, the striping foolproof, and the finished product entirely harmonious. Perhaps there should be a 13^th day of Christmas dedicated to scarves  . . . its a good number.

The really great news is that the First Annual Mostly Merino CSA Share offering was well–received! I now have a delicious fine, soft mill run ready to support new custom dye orders. Thank you share holders. The bad news is I also have a newly broken ankle. Dyework will begin again early November.  I will have a guestbook for you to sign if you visit my booth space at the NYS&W Festival this weekend in Rhinebeck.

Waves of Lace

*New Fall Kit*: Waves of Lace
A Lace Stole for Beginning Lace Knitters

A Peg Blechman Design for MOSTLY MERINO

Looking for an easy beginner’s lace project? Knit this rectangular stole horizontally using a combination of the traditional Feather & Fan lace pattern with garter stitch bands: this stole is fast, satisfying, drapes beautifully and the perfect accessory for any outfit or outing.

Finished size: 75″ long & 16 1/2″ wide

Waves of Lace

Undyed Natural Gray:
$60 & Immediate delivery

Dyed Colors:
$70 delivery by Dec. 15th

Free Shipping on all orders placed in October. Paying by check? Give yourself a $2 credit!

Hello Knitters! You may have noticed a slight change to the look of the website. We have updated it using WordPress, a powerful blogging and content management solution. Our hope is that this will allow us to keep the content current.

There are a few new features that come along with the update. The first is our mailing list. If you’re not getting our newsletter be sure to sign up at the bottom of the left hand column.  We anticipate sending out several emails per year. This will keep you informed about new kits as they become available, specials, shows, and other goodies.

The other section we’re excited about it the testimonial section which is still under construction. Browsing through Flickr and Ravelry we have seen all of your great photos and hope to include them on our site. If you would like to share please drop me an email, wellswilson [at] mostlymerino.com.

Lastly we have changed the “kits” page a bit so it is easier to view. The kits are now separated by categories.

If you have any suggestions or features that you would like to see added or that would be helpful to you this is a work in progress. I would love to hear your feedback and thoughts.

Cheers!

Wells
Margaret’s Son & Website Updater