splityarn

falconry isn't my gig

The body of the Tangled Yoke is finished. I confess I haven't put much effort into it lately. Spring is in the air and I've been busy at the sewing machine instead. The only time I've worked on the sweater is at knit night and on Saturday afternoons watching marathon sessions of Deadwood on DVD.

I cast on for the first sleeve this weekend and despite a niggling feeling, kept knitting. It just seemed so big. By the time I finished the ribbing and started into the stockinette portion it was confirmed. It's a gauntlet. Hawks can swoop in and land on my wrist kinda big. Mum is flying into town this afternoon so I'll try it on her then, but my suspicion is that it'll be frogged before I go to bed tonight. Sigh. I had really hoped I could make a push and finish it to have Mum model it and take it home with her, but I think I have to frog that idea too.

Over the ribbing and through the woods

Garter rib is not my favourite rib. Even though you work the actual ribbing every other row, it always seems to take longer than a plain ol' two by two. I feel like I'm always double checking my work. I can't zone out as much as with a regular rib or like with stockinette. I don't know if it's just the way my mind works or what, but it drives me a little batty. Thankfully I have the worst of it behind me now. The body for Tangled Yoke is worked as one piece so the only ribs I have left to think about are the sleeves and they're still a ways away.

On to the stockinette!

positives and negatives

I really wasn't sure how I'd feel about a pullover sweater when I began knitting Wicked. I'm such a dedicated cardigan girl, that I had concerns I'd feel trapped. It's not so much a claustrophobic thing (because obviously I can wear t-shirts aplenty) as not being able to cool down whenever I want. The biggest selling feature of a cardi is that someone who is always too hot can just unzip or unbutton a bit to regulate her temperature.

As it turns out, Wicked works nicely for me. I wore it all yesterday afternoon post-photo shoot and didn't feel trapped once. The silk in the Brooks Farm Fourplay gives it a lighter, drapier feeling than straight up wool would and the short sleeves and wide neckline don't make me overheat.

In the end I went pocketless and I'm ok with that. The last thing I want is to add some poochiness where I don't need it. Overall, I think Wicked v.2 is a winner. Just remember, if you knit it, heed my warnings and knit it with plenty of negative ease. I knit this one two sizes below my measurements.

Project details on Ravelry

purple is the new green

I was hoping to have Wicked finished in time for a St. Patrick's Day all-green reveal, but she's not quite ready. She's soaking in the sink in fact. Pocketless, but soaking. I still can't make up my mind about that damn pocket.

While I continue to ponder the pocket, I cast on for Mum's birthday present; a Tangled Yoke cardigan in a luscious plummy colour of Felted Tweed. The time pressure is off on this knit as her birthday is today. (Happy birthday Mum! Your sweater isn't ready.)

I'm in love with the colour. It's almost brown, not quite purple. A blending of my faves with Mum's. And it seems someone else in the house likes it too.

not a perfect (sweater) season

I confess I don't really like football at all. I love to watch hockey and when I married the Husband I added baseball to that list, but football just does not sing to me. I don't actively avoid football games, but I certainly don't seek them out. What I do like about it though, is it provides ample knitting time on the couch, completely uninterrupted. The Husband can jump up and down and holler at Tom Brady while I can quietly hum along on whatever knitting project I want.

The Central Park Hoodie was swatched and started during a game at the end of December and I was hoping to have the whole thing finished by yesterday's Superbowl, but I didn't quite make it. (And neither did the Patriots, but that's a whole other ball of yarn) All that remains now is three inches on the hood and the button bands. I think no matter how hard I try, knitting a sweater is always going to take more than 6 weeks. I always assume I can knock it out faster, but I'm consistently closer to the 2 month mark. Somebody please remind me of that in August next year so I can budget my winter knitting time better.

new year, new sweater

After finishing Twist, I wasted no time starting on the next big project. As soon as I hit 'post,' I printed out the pattern for the Knitscene Central Park Hoodie. By the end of the day, I had the ribbing on the back finished. This weekend with an impromptu trip to New York, I finished up the back on the train. I won't be able to keep up the pace for long, so it's best to get the biggest part done first, right?

The Rowan Scottish Tweed is pretty crunchy coming off the ball, but judging by the swatch, it will bloom nicely after a quick wet block. For now though, my stitching looks uneven due to the stiffness of the yarn, so pardon the mess.

twist and shout

Twist is done! Finished! And I couldn't be happier. I really dragged out the last 10% of this sweater. I suppose it's because if I took my time and only worked on it here and there, I wouldnt rush the finishing. I am usually so desperate to complete a project and start the next that I don't take my time with the final details. And really, if I've put two months into a project, why not put as much care and attention into the last few days as I did at the start. The other reason I took so long may have been anticipation of a mourning period of not having it to work on anymore. At any rate, it's complete, it's comfy, super warm and I think the fit is great for what I'd imagined.

Pattern: Twist by Bonne Marie Burns of Chic Knits

Yarn: 6.25 skeins of Cascade 220 in colour 9458. Two of the plys are brown, two are black. Hands down my favourite colour combo in the world. Most of my wardrobe fits into the brown or black category and now I can wear this sweater with all of it.

Needles: Size 7 US (5.0mm) Bamboo

Started: November 8th, 2007
Finished: December 26th, 2007

Modifications: I knit the body about an inch longer than the pattern and the arms about 3 inches longer. Changing the number of stitches to pick up on the button band to account for extra length was giving me fits, so I picked up three and skipped one. It took all the math out and didn't make my head hurt. Buttonhole placement was worked according to the formula in the back of Knitters Book of Finishing Techniques.

Final Verdict: I'd like for it to be about an inch longer, but I can block it out next time it has a bath. It's warm though and so far I love it. Bring on the cold weather.

Ravelry project details

number next

When I was nearing the completion of the Husband Sweater, I started thinking about the next big knitting project. We've made the transition from Austin to Boston, but I'm not ready for the cold wardrobe-wise. I have a coat, I have plenty of scarves and hats but I have zilch in the way of sweaters. The zipper on my   black cardi uniform just gave up the ghost, so I have only a hoody from Target. Time to fix that.

I'm a little bit late starting NaKniSweMo, but I'm giving it a go anyway. I cast on for Twist late last week in Cascade 220. The left front is finished and I'm halfway through the waist shaping on the back. It's been a while since I've done anything cabley. Yum! I can't get enough of looking at 'em.

wicked game

C'mon, you knew there'd be a Chris Isaak reference somewhere with this sweater, right?

Wicked is knit from the top down, which gives you the advantage of trying it on as you go. When I picked the size I was going to knit, I did it according to my bust size allowing about an inch of ease. I figured that would work for a sweater that would most likely be worn with a sheer t-shirt underneath. That measurement fit squarely in one of the ranges given. When I got to the underarms I put it on two long circs and tried it on. I was dead on gauge, but it was huge (probably would have fit the husband kind of huge.) Easy enough to fix, right? I ripped back the increases for the next smallest size and tried that on. It seemed ok, so I kept knitting. I finished the body, finished the pocket and finished one arm. I tried it on again and got a little worried. It still seemed too big. Wednesday night I put it on when the girls were here for drinks and the consensus is that it's completely unflattering at its current size. 

Sigh. Say goodbye to Wicked as you see it here, it's headed for the frog pond to be reknit two sizes smaller.

The good news is that I love the yarn, I love the pattern and if I rip and reknit it smaller, it's only going to take 3 skeins of the Brooks Farm Fourplay.

knit to perfection

Two months to the day after I cast on, the Husband Sweater is off the needles and I love it! The fit is almost perfect. Next time I'll make the arms shorter by an inch or so, but other than that it's a knockout. I probably could have knit it in half the time if I hadn't had to rip from the shoulders back to the underarms. Then I reknit one of the saddles twice; I was a perfectionist with this sweater, I wanted it to be worthy of the Husband.

The Project Details

Pattern: Elizabeth Zimmermann's Seamless Hybrid from Knitting Without Tears

Yarn: Cascade 220 in colours 9459 (the heathery tobacco-ish green) and 4002 (charcoal) for the inner cuffs. I think it took 5.5 hanks? Maybe 6. I can't find the original receipt, so I'm not sure how many I started with.

Needles: Size 8 bamboo

Started: October 28, 2006
Completed: December 28, 2006

Modifications: According to EZ's directions, I knit the t-shirt yoke. You knit one saddle, bind off half the stitches and continue knitting the half saddle across the back and graft it to the second saddle. It makes the back of the sweater a little higher than the front. You may remember that there was going to be a gray cross on the front as well, but I've scrapped it for now. I may duplicate stitch it in later on, we'll see.

Final Verdict: I love it! The Husband has been wearing it since the photoshoot, so I'd say it was worth waiting for.