Ten Stitch Rug

Last week, I left you with a loose end. I finished a spinning project that had been in the works for years and started knitting the yarn without revealing what I was making.

Surprise, it’s a throw rug!

One of my challenges in deciding what to make with this yarn was that the wool is too rough to be close to the skin for long. I had experimented with different spinning techniques over the years, which left me with a wide range of yarn weights to work with but only about 1,000 yards (914 meters). And I had dyed the yarn in an assortment of colors. Since I wanted to use the yarn together in a single project, my options were limited.

I chose the Ten Stitch Blanket by Frankie Brown. The simplicity of the design would work well with color changes, and I could knit until I ran out of yarn.

Except that I didn’t use that specific pattern. Based on reviews, I opted to knit the alternate version provided by Ealachan on Ravelry.

And then I made a few changes of my own:

• I knit through the back loop of the last stitch on the even rows. This gave me a tidy line of Vs along the outer edge from which to pick up stitches in subsequent rounds.
• I changed Row 17 on the first half of the mitered corner directions to slip two stitches purl wise, bring the yarn to the back, and turn. As originally written — and possibly also as a result of my previous change — the tip of the corner had a little twist to it. By slipping both stitches instead of knitting the first one, I ended up with a flatter corner.
• I added a crochet edging to finish off the rug by alternating single crochet and chain stitches.

The final size of the rug is about 29 by 31 inches (74 by 79 cm). I knit it on US-8 (5 mm) needles, and that needle size worked well for most of the handspun. I held the lighter weight yarn double. The single skein of bulky weight yarn serves as the edging, which I crocheted with a US-H/10.5 (5.5 mm) hook.

Throughout the project, I alternated the multicolor skeins with the single color skeins. I was mindful of color placement to the extent that I could be, given that the color changes weren’t the same in each skein.

We’ll use this rug in front of the kitchen sink — after I pick up a rug pad to keep the wool from slipping on the wood. The rug that was in that spot will move to the back hall where the shoes congregate.

Ah, no more loose ends!