b r o o k l y n t w e e d

Morningside Neckwarmer

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 03:30:00 +0000

Phew - it's busy busy busy around here! I feel terrible for such spotty posts recently, like all I've been doing is dropping in to tell you where new patterns are at! My apologies, and I'll do my best to navigate this crazy year and keep you all abreast of the knitting that's going on (it definitely is!)

I did a little project for the Classic Elite Web-Letter last week. It's a one-skeiner and was conceived as a solution for maximizing that little bit of luxury fiber you may have hiding somewhere but have been too afraid to touch. I had a skein of Classic Elite's Stormy (cashmere tweed... 'nuff said) and whipped this up - I think it's going to get a lot of neckplay this year!

The pattern is available HERE [Ravel it] and is written for two different sizes/styles - both shown here. Each piece is knit at a slightly different gauge - the Rust version is knit on US 8's at 14 sts to 4 inches in Brioche Stitch for a firmer fabric that acts more as a faux stand-up collar and looks great under a jacket or sports coat (You may just fake someone into thinking you're wearing an entire cashmere sweater...) The purple version is knit on needles two sizes larger for a fabric with a bit more drape with added length for a more slouchy, voluminous style. Wearer's choice!

Have you ever worked Brioche Stitch before? It's a really wonderful stand-by and I love to go back to it every now and again. It's squishy and feels thick while actually being a very lightweight, lofty fabric. Great for cashmere! In fact, how many stitch patterns are cool enough to warrant their own personal web site? [If you run into confusion or want to read more about what this stitch is all about - be sure to read more behind the link.]

A word of warning about Brioche - the stitch pattern takes a little knitting to become visible. Blindly knit forward for that first inch or so, though, and you'll see the tell-tale ribbing start to appear.

Here's an idea I love - for the really cold-weather days that will be here before we know it, I like wearing these under wool scarves. You get the best of both worlds - rugged, woolie neckwear with a cashmere secret for next-to-skin delight. Also, cashmere has that whole 8-times-warmer-than-wool thing going for it, too.

The pattern employs some Cast-On and Bind-Off tricks that I like which help compensate for Brioche Stitch's wiiiide gauge - a double stranded Long Tail Cast-On (exactly what it sounds like - Long Tailing with two strands of yarn) makes for added flexibility and a nice edge... and the Sewn Bind-Off (I recommend EZ's) is essential for anything being pulled over our heads (also known as the Sweater Collar Savior).

Aren't you loving that we can finally indulge in some beautiful Fall weather? It's really my favorite time of year - you can't beat that beautiful light, and several of my handknits have already gotten some serious street time. Not to mention prime sweater-watching in the city - very inspiring!

** I'll be teaching this weekend outside of Pittsburgh in Sewickley, PA - if you're taking a class, I'll see you there! **

Porom

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 16:52:00 +0000

This season's second hat is quite different from the first, but a fun knit nonetheless and an interesting shape and silhouette to spice up any handknit hat collection. Porom is a shapely hat worked in Shetland wool. The simple, elegant lace repeat and healthy dose of slouch make it a great Fall accessory.

The hat is worked with approximately 190 yards of DK-weight shetland wool. This sample was knit with Jamieon's Double Knitting (the 3-ply version of the ever-popular Spindrift) and I highly recommend it as the ideal yarn match for this particular design. Shetland is light and warm and hard to beat where woolie lace is concerned.

The simple lace rib repeat makes for an intuitive knit, while still yielding an elegant and subtle texture with a great, light-weight drape. Shaping at brim and crown is integrated into the stitch pattern to avoid any unsightly visual hiccups.

I'm really happy with how this project came out - the undyed wool and the stitch pattern made a texture I really like, despite it's simplicity. It reminds me of coral or a bleached sea-urchin's hollowed shell. The woolen-spun yarn traps air and is a super insulator, despite all those eyelets.

A quick note about yarn choices - DK weight yarns come in a lot of shapes and sizes with a relatively wide weight-shift within their specific classification. Some DK weight yarns are slightly heavier and generally have a gauge of about 20 sts to 4 inches (Rowan Scottish Tweed DK is an example of this) - these slightly heavier DK weight wools are not recommended for this pattern. Gauge for this pattern is set at 22 sts to 4 inches and I highly recommend something on the lighter side of the DK spectrum for best results. Lightly spun yarns and animal fibers with great drape would look particularly nice. As a reference for stashbusters - Jamieson's Double Knitting is a woolen-spun 3-ply yarn.

The pattern is available as a PDF download and priced at $4.75. You can obtain this pattern in one of two ways - if you are a Ravelry member, Porom is available in my Pattern Store as a Ravelry Download. The pattern is also available directly through PayPal for non-ravelry members or for those who prefer to go that route in general. A preview of the PDF layout can be seen below, with buttons to both methods of download following. Pattern instructions for lace motifs are charted.

A short disclaimer: As a self-publishing designer, I strongly feel that it is my responsibility to you to present a quality product free of errors that is pleasing both from an aesthetic and practical point of view. All patterns that are self-published here at Brooklyn Tweed have been test knit by multiple knitters using various manufactured yarns to ensure the most pleasurable and intuitive knitting experience. I have personally prepared all diagrams and charts as well as knit/photographed samples and designed pattern layouts - soliciting the opinions of knitters prior to publication in an effort to streamline this product. I have done my very best to bring you a pattern that I am proud to stand behind fully. I do my best to respond to concerns or comments as soon as possible and, as always, thank you for your support and encouragement. Happy knitting! -Jared

Regrouping

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 16:54:00 +0000

September, for me, seems to consistently be a time for re-assessing my knitting direction. Time to circle the wagons, see what we've got after all that summer knitting and see where we're going. This year, as with last, it also happens to be the time when my schedule undergoes a rather severe change and I find I have new knitting needs that need to be met.

I've been floundering a little bit over the last week trying to transition from having the time and brainpower to work on intricate, detailed knitting, to striking a new balance with simpler, more intuitive projects. Things are still up in the air, but I did do a bit of spinning to help aid the confluence.

I pulled out a bag of natural brown shetland and set myself on auto-pilot. Lately more and more I've been craving natural, undyed sheepswool, and spinning this has been just the ticket for me in the last few days. As for knitting with it, I'm dreaming of some in-the-round knitting with steeks - something simple that shows off this beautiful wool. For now, though, I'm happy with endless plying.

I've said it before, but Shetland is one of my all time favorite things to work with on the wheel. I think it gets lot of flack for being typically scratchy and unwearable, but I think it is quite the opposite - so light and lofty, it spins up into a yarn that is fluffy, soft and warm - not to mention looking beautiful. I never tire of it.

In other news, as I was trying to physically organize my knitting this week, I was able to collect up all my swatches from this summer into one place (they were stuffed in many a nook and cranny) (oh the places you'll go, little swatches!) and had to take a photo. Is this a way to measure progress?

I have a scarily low number of projects on the needles (that's a relative "low"). After having finished up some design projects that were needing attention, I realized I may be closer than ever to digging myself out of the deep ditch of WIPs I seem to have created for myself last year.

Oh yes, and the woolly lace is progressing without delay and should be all ready for the click of the seasons that I'm expecting here any day now...

Until then, though, I'll be doing my share of knitterly spring-cleaning in hopes of reaching a balance which I can ride right into the thick of our favorite season for wool-wearing. It really is just around the corner.

Habitat

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 22:03:00 +0000

With the light fading outside on the last official day of my summer, I'm quietly mourning the loss of the past three magic months which have been productive and rewarding. The good news is that in the wrapping up of this chapter, I have a few Fall patterns all ready for you! The first of the few that I'll be distributing here this season is a hat that I've really become attached to over the past month - I can't seem to get enough of them, and I'm happy to finally be able to share it with you.

Habitat is a warm, textural hat that's great for both newbie and seasoned cablers alike. The pattern is written for worsted weight wool and includes two adult sizes. The cable motifs are integrated into the hats shaping and the crown decreases come together to form a root-like star motif atop the head.

As I said above, two sizes are offered in the pattern - one for Small to Medium adult head sizes and one for Medium to Larger noggins. The smaller size is approximately .5" shallower and suited for folks who like hats to come just over the tops of their ears. The larger, deeper hat will also fit average adult small heads, but cover your ears to the lobes - in my experience, ear-coverage preferences vary from hat wearer to hat wearer, so both options are included for an optimal fit for everyone.

Any worsted weight yarn will work, although wools are recommended most highly. Tweeds, heathers and subtly variegated yarns all look wonderful with the cables (one of each of these yarn types is shown here in the photos.) Pattern gauge is given in Stockinette stitch for ease in swatching and is a standard 4.5 sts per inch for worsted weight yarns. Suggested needle sizes are US7 and US8 - keep in mind, though - this is only a suggestion! Use whatever needles give you accurate gauge for best results.

Samples shown in these photos show both sizes - the Green version is the smaller, shallower size. Blue and burgundy versions are the larger, deeper size. Again, which size to knit is wholly preferential and depends on how you like your handknit hats to sit on your head.

Yarns shown in the samples include: Sundara Yarns Worsted Merino in "Green over Gold" (Green), Rowan Yorkshire Tweed Aran in "Bramble" (Burgundy) and Jamieson's Shetland Heather in "North Sea" (Blue).

More photos of the pattern can be found here in my Habitat Gallery. The pattern has also been test knit in various yarns including Debble Bliss Donegal Aran Tweed, and the ever popular Malabrigo. There are a whole lot of worsted weight yarns out there, so creativity is encouraged!

The pattern is available as a downloadable PDF and priced at $4.75. You can obtain this pattern in one of two ways - if you are a Ravelry member, Habitat is available in my Pattern Store as a Ravelry Download. The pattern is also available directly through PayPal for non-ravelry members, or those who prefer to go that route. A preview of the PDF layout can be seen below, with buttons to both methods of download following. Pattern instructions for cables are charted.

A short disclaimer: As a self-publishing designer, I strongly feel that it is my responsibility to you to present a quality product free of errors that is pleasing both from an aesthetic and practical point of view. All patterns that are self-published here at Brooklyn Tweed have been test knit by multiple knitters using various manufactured yarns to ensure the most pleasurable and intuitive knitting experience. I have personally prepared all diagrams and charts as well as knit shown samples, photographed and designed pattern layouts - soliciting the opinions of knitters prior to publication in an effort to streamline this product. I have done my very best to bring you a pattern that I am proud to stand behind fully. As always, thank you for your support and encouragement - and happy knitting.

-Jared

Thorpe

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 15:08:00 +0000

Being on vacation allowed me to catch up on many things - one of which was photographing some of the projects that were able to sneak through the knitting gauntlet last year without ever being reported. Today's hat, for example was knit in December and given as a Christmas gift, but never caught on camera. Until now. (No one is safe!)

Pattern: Thorpe by Kirsten Kapur [Free PDF] (*Ravel it)
Materials: Beaverslide McTaggart Tweed "Mountain Mahogany" & "Autumn Dogwood"
Amount: Less than one skein and a few yards of CC for half-double-crochet trim
Needles: US 9/5.5mm KP Options

Started and Finished: December 2007

I guess technically this could be called a companion piece to the Adult Tomten, as it was made with yarn leftovers, incorporates a healthy dose of garter stitch, uses virtually the same trim idea, and incorporates a straight-forward cleverness that I like a lot in patterns. One of many really solid patterns in Kirsten's online oeuvre over at Through the Loops.

Thorpe is worked from the top down, starting with a circular cast-on and increasing regularly until the hat is the right size (the pattern offers three different sizes to choose from). Working hats from the top down, like working garments from the top down, has a lot of advantages built in, like being able to try-on as you go and tweak widths and lengths to be perfectly customized to the individual head size you're hoping to cover.

The other thing I love about the top-down option is that it makes subbing different gauges very easy and organic. For example, I knit a dk-version last winter out of handspun, working the pattern as written but continuing increases until the size was right. I only slightly tweaked the placement of the earflaps to correspond to the new gauge - but that's a simple adjustment.

The pattern is versatile too - male and female friends all want to wear it! I better get on making a couple more (did I mention the pattern also includes a colorwork version??)

As far as the yarn is concerned, I'm sure I've waxed poetic enough about this stuff in post upon post in the past. This particular version of the McTaggart Tweeds (the 2-ply yarns) are being phased out, unfortunately, but not to worry! A new, gorgeous version is being ushered in - the gauge is the same, and yes, those amazing color choices that make Leanne's yarn stand far above the rest are all still there (see the photo in my previous post).

And speaking of hats - there are more coming. I have a few new hat patterns that are just about ready to be released here, so stay tuned. More wool. More cables. More knitting fun. See you soon!

Back In the Swing

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 15:49:00 +0000

Hi, everyone! The last weeks have been quite the whirlwind - I spent July traveling around my home turf in the PNW. I did a lot of knitting and design work and got a much needed break from city life. The trip was peaceful, insightful and inspiring - exactly what I was after. When I finally got back to New York, I had a last minute opportunity to travel to Cape Cod, and I promptly jumped on that train, despite my better judgement that staying home and catching up on the bevy of work awaiting me here was the right thing to do, and don't regret it. I figure I need to enjoy my last summer as a student in an official capacity.

So what's been doing on the needles? So very much to share. That lace bug that comes around every few months is back with a vengeance, and I thought I'd try my hand at some lace designing. Uncharted territory for me, but I've been having a looot of fun with it.

To tell you the truth, my tolerance of heat is starting to wear thin - granted we've had what I would consider a very mild summer here (knock on wood), and I haven't even been here the whole time, but air conditioned quarters are still required for marathon knitting - and my wintry temperament is feeling stifled. Visions of lace, cables and colorwork taunt me nightly. Even so, I'll continue patiently waiting for the click of the seasons to happen sometime in September (please?). When it does though...

...there will be plenty of warm, winter lace. I thought maybe the summer would stave off this year's blanket trend in my knitting, but the "Year of the Blanket" title has remained all the same. There may or may not be more than just this one gaining momentum in recesses of the apartment.

I've been playing with wools both heavy and light - I can't seem to get enough of that wonderful texture you get with pre-blocked, heavy weight lace projects.

I know it's cruel to just give little peeks under the (lace) blanket, but these things will be expounded upon shortly. Something I can indulge you in more of however is this, my most treasured recent acquisition: a box of new yarns from Beaverslide Dry Goods, one of my all time favorite farms over in beautiful Montana. Tell me though, seriously, what could be better than coming home from vacation to this:

Most definitely worth breaking a serious yarn diet for. No guilt here. Really.

Over the next few weeks I'll be catching up on many things that have been sorely neglected, not the least of which is my inbox. All things considered, it's great to be home - I really missed my yarn.

'Turn A Square' Pattern Now Available

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 23:50:00 +0000

Back in February, my brother's Christmas hat (scroll down) generated a lot of pattern requests and I've finally gotten around to putting a pattern together (thank you, vacation time!)

The pattern is available as a free PDF download - either in my Ravelry store, if you prefer to keep it in your Ravelry library, or just click the button below to download directly to your computer.

The pattern is perfect for using up leftover yarn and works with any worsted weight scraps you may have lying around. The hat uses one solid and one self striping yarn. The raglan decrease scheme on the crown turns your circles into squares and adds a bit of interest to an otherwise very ordinary beanie.

Aside from being a quick and easy gift idea, the pattern includes a simple how-to on working jogless stripes in my preferred method, and is a great, low-risk opportunity for becoming comfortable with this technique (it's wonderful and super easy to learn).

The hat requires approximately 40g of a solid and 25g of a self-striping yarn. Wool is recommended, as always. My version was worked in Cascade 220 as the MC and Noro Silk Garden as the CC. I've had the hat test knit and these amounts seem to be pretty consistent throughout, so you can weigh your scraps to see if you've got enough to squeeze out a knitted gift in a pinch.

I think the pattern would look great with a handspun yarn subbed for the Noro, as well. Yarn amounts are given for manufactured yarns only, however, so keep that in mind if you're planning on using your handspun.

Happy knitting and enjoy!

Druid Mittens

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 23:16:00 +0000

It's always a wonderful moment when magazine previews hit the Internet because then we designers finally get to share some of our little secrets from the past year. I designed and knit these mittens up in the spring and really grew quite attached to them, so I'm really happy to finally introduce the two of you.

This pattern will be available in the upcoming Fall/Winter issue of Vogue Knitting, along with many other wonderful mitten designs from a handful of great designers. A little mitten spread seems like just the ticket for Fall knitting, doesn't it?

The concept for these was something intricate and beautiful with lots of detail. The mittens are knit in fingering weight Shetland wool (Jamieson's Spindrift, one of my all-time faves, in the 'Leprechaun colorway') and covered with texture. Not the quickest knit, but really fun for us detail-oriented-types. Or those of us who just plain love bobbles (I'm not ashamed).

The pattern features knit-purl patterning on the cuff, shaped wrist, gusseted thumb, and garter stitch straps flanking the sides (I had to squeeze the garter in there somehow). The palm is worked in a textured tweed stitch and the thumb features its own little cable motif that grows out of the gusset.

The mitten is closed with a garter stitch saddle - a little detail that I really love. The garter stitch panels on either side come up and over the fingers, capping the top seamlessly, a la seamless saddle shoulder sweater construction, and are grafted together to finish up.

Being such a busy little pair of mittens, they require some acrobatic needle work and because of it look pretty lumpy after knitting. I highly recommend a warm wash in the sink - which will do wonders for this pattern and Shetland in general. They seemed a little limp and less-than-impressive before their bath, but afterwards bloomed wonderfully - the fabric becomes much more cohesive and the cables pop. If you aren't an immersion-blocker, making an exception for these babies will really pay off.

I've listed the pattern over on Ravelry if you want to check up on all the specifics, see the other patterns featured in this issue, or queue the project for your Fall or Winter knitting.

And the honor of all honors: the folks at Vogue chose these for the cover of the issue! Talk about flattering!

photo courtesy of Soho Publishing

Enjoy the issue!

Spiral Yoke Pullover

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 07:28:00 +0000

Every once in a while we're lucky enough to acquire a truly special batch of yarn. We save it and save it until we think we have the perfect pattern for it. When and if that moment ever comes and we dare start in on this high-pressure project, we spend half the time worrying if the sweater will ever be good enough for this, the jewel of your stash. And very often it's not.

I've had and have a lot of these types of yarns that have never been touched as a sole result of the fear that no garment could ever do them justice. And until the beginning of June this was one of them. And, for the first time I'm not sitting here wondering if there could have been a pattern that might have been just a little more appropriate - and that's enough on its own to be pumped about.

Pattern: Spiral Yoke Pullover by Meg Swansen [Ravel It]
Source: Handknitting With Meg Swansen (Schoolhouse Press)
Materials: Sundara Yarn Worsted Merino (Discontinued) in Charcoal over Scarlet
Amount: 7.5 skeins (approx. 1300 yards)
Needles: US 7 and 8/4.5 and 5.0mm Addi Turbo Circulars

Start Date: 2 June 2008
Finish Date: 16 June 2008 (real-time is always a bit ahead of blog-time...)

Notes: I followed the pattern recipe as directed - there's already a lot of freedom built in so there isn't much to modify or fuss about. I worked a tubular cast on for both sleeve cuffs and base of body (i use this method - it takes longer but the results are always clean as a whistle), which looks really sharp in a yarn with such crisp stitch definition. To finish the neck I worked a sewn bind-off, my very favorite way to finish collars - super stretchy without ever getting streeetched out of shape.

This is truly a special sweater: the yarn alone means a lot - a gift from a talented friend which is not only exactly the color I had been vainly searching for for ages, but is also now sadly discontinued - and a pattern which I couldn't have enjoyed more. Seriously. Rarely, if ever do I find a pattern that I wouldn't mind knitting again right away after finishing. But, never say never.

If you're interested in making this but don't want to buy an entire book for one pattern, let me tell you to silence those worries straight away. Handknitting has a bunch of smart, quality patterns, (author people, author) many of which I plan to make in the future, and is, as can be expected, full of clever tricks and techniques as well as plenty of the witty banter we've all come to expect from Elizabeth and Meg.

More about the yarn - it's a semi-solid, hand dye by Sundara of Sundara Yarn in Seattle, WA - one of the great dyeing talents in the business and a wonderful person to match. I came into this rare lot two Christmases ago and have had it decorating my shelves ever since. It's a 4-ply, worsted-spun merino with super crisp stitch definition and the ability to suck up some serious color! I've never seen a yarn with as deeply saturated a red as this. (Also the hardest color in all of Christendom to photograph... but it's close enough *grumble grumble photoshop frustration grumble*.)

The pattern is written using EPS (Elizabeth's Percentage System) which you know I can never get enough of. There are no stitch counts or spoon feeding of any kind, just gauge suggestions, body percentages, and of course charts for that lovely spiral, which means if you put your mind to it you're almost bound to have a sweater that fits you wonderfully and a knitting process that is hugely satisfying.

The spiral yoke is genius because it exploits round-yoke construction (consecutive decrease rings evenly spaced over yoke depth) in a beautiful and clever way, at the same time totally camouflaging all those k2togs (or ssk's if you want your spirals to go in the opposite direction)(Yes, you get to choose). I'm always drawn to the spiral in knitting - it seems to me to be the organic shape that is most in line with the process of knitting in the round, or at least regularly decreasing in the round (think spiral crown shaping on hats, etc). It's smart and intuitive, and really fun to knit.

My favorite part? Definitely the collar accent where the spiral snaps into the opposing direction, defining the collar band and creating all those sharp little zig-zagged angles. So cool.

This pattern has a big ol' stamp of approval from me - I'd love to see more of them with different yarns and on different folks. I'm seriously considering another. I'm thinking.... Handspun natural Shetland. Cardigan. Sounds good right? Now if it weren't for all those other sweaters sittin' around getting jealous.

She's Done!

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:35:00 +0000

I'm working on a special location photo shoot, but until then here's a little peak!

More soon!

Spiral!

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 00:25:00 +0000

The glorious red blob is finally shaping up into something really special, and I'm loving it.

The spiral is, to me, a constantly intriguing motif in knitting and I love patterns that play with and incorporate its structure. I'm enjoying this sweater so much, I might make two - what a great pattern!

I had a wonderful time in Virginia teaching and got to meet a whole bunch of wonderful knitters. Between the recovery from my trip and preparations for my real vacation, things have been a bit crazy, but I'm gearing up for a hell of a lot of knitting over the next month.

As of tomorrow, and for the entire month of July I'll be relaxing on the west coast on a much needed vacation. I'll be passing back and forth between Seattle, Portland and the Oregon Coast with knitting always by my side and happily leaving the NYC humidity behind. I plan on knitting a lot and finally getting to play around with some new design ideas. I will have my computer with me, so you may not notice much of a change around here, other than hopefully more knitting output than normal. That's what vacations are all about, right? At least for us knitters.

Goodbye Brooklyn, hello Pacific.

New Yarns. New Blobs.

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:25:00 +0000

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for all of your kind words on the past few posts. It's fun to finally get all this knitting out there, as its been piling up somethin' fierce throughout the spring. I'm psyched that so many of you are getting the itch to knit big garter-y blankets. Good timing too, they'll be done just in time for fall. And in case you missed it, I updated the last post with a link to a picture of the full blanket (check the very last lines of the post).

Now that we've cleared the air of the finished knitting, I can get back to babbling on about all the many random things that are running around unfinished. I'll continue to ignore the projects whose lengthy hibernation hasn't yet ended, if it ever does. (Scott, Scott? Where are you?)

I've been hit with a fresh new wave of sweater-knitting-fever, and have had a couple of absolutely wonderful yarns stashed and waiting for a time just like this. The most important of them are the following:

A big batch of hand dyed yarn from Sundara. I procured 10 skeins of this unbelievable red last Christmas (self-love Christmas presents are great, aren't they?) and have been thinking about it all year. It's her (sadly now discontinued) worsted merino semi-solid, and I've finally found a worthy use for it.

I've started Meg Swansen's Spiral Yoke Pullover, a sweater that has been on my list for a long time and is, I think, a great match for the yarn.

In a rare display of self-restraint, I actually knit the sleeves first this time. Something I should do more often, because when you're as excited as I am about a certain yoke pattern, you don't want to stop for anything once you reach the underarms.

The other stash jewel that I've been coveting to work with is a big batch of Queensland Kathmandu Aran Tweed that I snagged from the WEBS sale this year. Chocolatey, tweedy, woolen spun, and soft (cashmere, silk, merino, thanks) - I'll knit you any day.

The nameless blob seen below? Yep, you guessed it - another seamless sweater. You'd think I'd tire of 'em, but I can just never get enough. (I guess this is the same syndrome sock-knitters are plagued with, right? There can never be enough handknits to cover your feet?)

This is a design of my own that I've been itching to realize for some time and hopefully will. Don't hold me to it, though. Designs always have a lifespan of their own.

I'm off to Virginia early in the morning to teach at the Purl Jam over the weekend. If you're signed up for some of my classes, I'll see you there! BT e-mail response times over the weekend will be delayed, as a result, but I'll surely be fielding double-time when I return. Until then!

Knitted Garter Stitch Blanket (AKA Big Squishy Lovefest)

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:10:00 +0000

Of all the things I've knit, I can't remember a time when I've been more smitten with a project. Sure there may have been things that we more exciting or eventful to work on but nothing (and I mean nothing) is better for wrapping yourself up in than this. (I realize the timing of this post is absolutely ridiculous as I'm writing in the middle of this summer's first heat wave, but there it is)

Pattern: Knitted Garter Stitch Blanket in Sheepsdown (Ravelry)
Source: The Opinionated Knitter by Elizabeth Zimmermann
Materials: Cascade Eco Wool (100% undyed Peruvian) #8063; yarn held double
Amount: Just over 9 skeins; approx. 4500 yards, 5lbs (!)
Needles: US13 circulars (although straights will work too)
Finished Dimensions: 80 x 53 inches

Started: October 2007
Finished: May 2008

Here is another example of how far a simple, clever design can go. The pattern originally appeared in Elizabeth Zimmermann's 9th Wool Gathering Newsletter in the Fall of 1962. It is available now in The Opinionated Knitter (a collection of Elizabeth's newsletters) with both the original texts (typewritten and all) and diagrams alongside Meg's present-day suggestions and updates to each pattern.

The original pattern calls to be knit in Sheepsdown, Schoolhouse's super bulky, lightly spun, undyed wool. Gorgeous stuff, and I had grand plans of knitting with it before I got economical and turned to my stash to find a plethora of Eco Wool begging for attention. Holding Eco Wool double gave me a bulky gauge (not as bulky as Sheepsdown, but close) and a wonderful squishy, cozy fabric that seemed like a dream to work up a whole afghan with.

Now, about the simplicity and the genius: the entire blanket is composed of four interlocking pieces, all of equal width, which are formed by simple mitered corners. The beauty, to me, is that throughout the entire process you always have 24 stitches on your needle. Always. And there is nary a purl stitch to be found. Netflix Knitters Dream Project? Yes.

Because my gauge was 3 sts per inch and the pattern calls for 2sts per inch, I upped my stitch count from 24 to 36 in hopes of having a very large, very substantial piece of knitting upon finishing. Another benefit of the design is its complete ease in resizing - because the only shaping involved is a mitered corner and you only have one number to worry about (24sts), you can essentially knit this in any weight of yarn at any size depending on how many stitches are cast on. I think a baby-blanket version in a nice soft DK weight wool would be lovely.

Whenever there's this much garter stitch, and this much weight, stretching and distorting of fabric can become a valid concern. Another built-in advantage of the design is that the fabric's consistent directional changes due to the mitered corners gives more structure while mainting wonderful stretchiness. The addition of the I-cord edging also frames the entire piece with added structure to keep everything in shape, and I think cleans up the design for a very nice finish. The I-cord edging is a suggestion from Meg, and one I definitely think is worth the extra time at the end - I love how it turned out.

The directional patterning also makes a wonderful texture and a wonderful play with light and shade, as different parts of the whole catch light differently (see photo below). The finished dimensions on mine came out to about 80"x53" - nice and big, and fits perfectly on the surface of a queen-sized bed. Also a favorite for snuggly folks on couches.

Finishing on this one is a big job and also entails some important decisions. There are many ways to seam up garter stitch, and I tried different methods to see what I liked best. I first tried an invisible garter graft, which looked nice on the RS, but not as nice on the WS, and was too weak in my opinion to hold this beast together. I decided in the end on using a single crochet chain seam to join all the pieces. The crochet seam has some major advantages here: first and most important, because the geometry is strong and completely carries the aesthetic, I wanted a visible seam that accented the construction in a clean way (and had an acceptable WS look). Aside from the aesthetic aspect, a crochet chain is strong and can really take a beating without a flinch. Because this thing weighs about 5 lbs (!) a strong, sturdy seam is essential.

As I mentioned above I trimmed the whole thing with a 3 stitch I-Cord, both for looks and structural help. After all the pieces were sewn together, I knit up one stitch for every ridge and attached the I-Cord all the way around, grafting the first and last row together invisibly.

Another quick tip: I recommend a sewn bind-off on all pieces. It keeps the ends of each piece stretchy and matches the cast on (I did a long-tail).

I'm totally enamored and think this is a lifer - good sturdy wool in a good sturdy pattern is sure to hold up for the long haul. I want to thank my models, Ryan and Joelle, for being total champs and swathing themselves in this thing during 96 degree heat without complaint. That's a feat unto itself.

And although you're folded up for summer, dear blanket, when September rolls around again you'll know how truly loved you are. Happy knitting one and all.

Edited to Add: Oops! Looks like I forgot to take a picture of the beast in its entirety! Had to strap on the wide-angle lens and clear out the living room... but I got it. You can see the full shot here.

The Swisher

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:35:00 +0000

I really had to dig deep through the blog archives to see when, oh when did I even start this thing! I got the yarn when it was just released in Fall of '06 and started the knitting some time early in December. I remember that I started this on a sick day - I was in bed, freezing, wearing wooly things and needed something soft and colorful to keep me busy. I don't think I ever thought it would be two summers later before it was wearable, though. Don't you love knitting?

Pattern: Top Down Raglan Recipe
Source: Knitting From the Top by Barbara Walker
Size: 43" Chest Circumference
Materials: KnitPicks Swish Superwash Worsted (100% Superwash Wool)
Amount: 6 balls "Bordeaux" & 7 balls of "Truffle" (finished sweater weighs 650g)

Started: December 2006
Finished: May 2008

Barbara Walker is right up there with Elizabeth Zimmermann as one of the veritable forces of nature in the recent-history of our craft. Aside from her most well-known contribution and complete re-invention of the stitch dictionary, she is also credited with exploring, dissecting, and propagating knitting from the top down, not just sweaters mind you - hats, dresses, pants and more! Her book is a classic and comes highly recommended from me. She is truly a wonder.

If you've never knit a sweater from the top down, you must try it. My very first sweater was knit in this manner,and I've always had a fondness for it. Aside from one minor drawback, it's full of all kinds of advantages, the most valuable being absolute control over length in body and sleeves and the try-on-as-you-go possibility. As you're knitting, you can don your garment as many times as you need in order to get your lengths just right before that final bind off. (In fact, you could technically knit the sweater whilst wearing it, as exhibited on the book's cover, although I don't recommend it.) (Yes, I tried) If your sleeves grow after washing, just rip out the bind off, tear back an inch and bind off again. It's all very convenient. The drawback? The sweater gets a little cumbersome and large towards the end, when you're finishing off that last sleeve you may get a little tired of flipping the whole thing around as you're knitting. I think, though, that this is a completely reasonable price to pay for the obvious benefits of top-down knitting (intuitive points, check).

[EDIT] Awesome tip left in the comments by Miss Sandra - after finishing the yoke, knit the sleeves first. When you're ready to start the body, tuck the sleeves inside the yoke to minimize all those awkward appendages while turning your knitting. It won't change the weight of the garment, but will definitely help with the cumbersome aspects of maneuvering your sweater. (Thanks, Sandra!) Also I forgot to mention, EZ recommends (in Knitting Workshop) to keep the bulk of the garment in a canvas or cottan bag as you work for ease of turning.

I think the main reason for the long lull between start and finish on this project was primarily a materials issue. As far as superwash wools go, I think Swish is a pretty good one - where softness is concerned, it's wonderful (baby knitting heaven) - but I've realized over the years that I'm not a big superwash man. Back in 2006 I think I was still optimistic, but in the end I prefer my wools to be as sheepy and woolly as possible. When wool fibers are treated to be washable they lose some of the qualities that I'm most drawn to and since knitting, for me, is very much about the tactile experience, these material choices really make a difference in how fast or slow a project goes. (I think I have some cotton projects that may never rise from their half finished states. They're really old.)

My sweater grew slightly after washing . When I swatched (waaay back then), I washed and dried in a machine and had a shrinking of row gauge. So when I decided that I'd just wash it by hand like I do with all my other sweaters, I was caught off guard when the thing grew a bit upon drying. This little surprise turned out to be a blessing in disguise - the yarn gets über soft upon washing, and the fit was slightly baggier than I'm used to, the sleeves just a little longer than normal - turns out it's one of the coziest ones in my collection now and I've been wearing it a lot (those days are over now, 95 degree forecast for the weekend. Blargh.)

[EDIT] I forgot again to mention something important about my stripes! This info is also true for my striped vest, as I seemed to get a lot questions about jogs with that project as well. In all of my striped projects, assuming I'm working with only 2 colors, I employ this technique for jogless stripes and carry the unused yarn along the inside of the garment, wrapping the colors around each other at each color-change to catch the unworked yarn and keep things clean on the inside. There are no extra ends to weave in, and the beginning of the round is almost completely invisible on the RS of the fabric.

All in all, I'm really happy with how this turned out - while I don't love knitting with superwash, i do like wearing it. Also, it's definitely an interesting wardrobe item color-wise. And speaking of color - I apologize for the slight deviation in color-correctness from photo to photo. Magenta and warmish brown really like to trick my camera!

Up next, a ginormous wool blanket that can swallow people whole. Not kidding.

Shifting Sands

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:03:00 +0000

This one has been a long time coming, but I think it was worth it.

Pattern: Shifting Sands Scarf by Grumperina [*via Ravelry]
Materials: Malabrigo Pure Worsted Merino in "Frank Ochre"
Amount: 2 hanks; 430 yds/200g
Needles: US 9/5.5 mm straight Clovers
Finished Dimensions: 65" long, 6" wide

Start Date: November 2006
Finish Date: November 2007 (shameful I know)

This is one of those projects that sat in my basket and got a lot of short-term play, off and on over the course of a year: bus trips, flights, waiting rooms, etc. It inched along slow and steady but I finally knit up all the yarn sometime last Fall. As for why it took so long to get blog play, I can't be sure, although it might have something to do with all the wearing that was happening in the colder months. Malabrigo users know how neck-friendly this stuff is!

Modifications: The pattern is written for a sport weight yarn but is easily modified for any weight you'd like. The pattern repeat is 5 sts wide, so any multiple of 5+2 (two selvage sts) will work. I cast on 42 stitches, rather than the 52 suggested by the pattern, and knit until I ran out of yarn. The other mod I tested out was a hem on either end of the scarf to combat the natural curling of the fabric. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out - you can see the hem in the previous photo.

Here's what I did: I cast on 15% less stitches with a provisional cast on, knit one row, knit one row increasing evenly across the work to 42, worked a turning row using *k1, sl1* across, work one row stockinette, work first pattern row and continue scarf as written to end. I tacked down the loose stitches after all was said and done, but you could easily knit the hem together with the 3rd row of pattern for a super-clean join.

As for the hem on the other side, it's basically the reverse order of the previous instructions: work last cable row, knit one row, knit turning row (k1, sl1 across), decrease 15% of sts evenly across next row (I decreased 5 or 6 sts), knit 2 rows and tack down loose stitches invisibly to back of fabric. Press the edges with a steam iron to get good-hem-behavior and a nice finished look.

I have a finished sweater and a finished blanket to share with you in the next couple posts. The summer heat might be here, but my wool addiction is stronger than any weather condition. Bring on the summer sweater knitting!

Striped Vest in Handspun and Recycled Tweed

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Wed, 21 May 2008 19:29:00 +0000

First, my apologies for stringing you all along bit by bit with this piece. In truth I knit the thing from start to finish in a very short period but like to take a little extra time with presentation. Plus I loved photographing this thing! Not to mention the obvious fun of milking a good steek for all it's worth.

Pattern: Generic Vest
References: Knitting in the Old Way by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts and Knitting Workshop by EZ
Yarn: My handspun shetland, "Low Country" fiber from Hello Yarn; Recycled Irish tweed wool from this thrift store sweater.
Needles: US8/5.0mm KnitPicks Harmony Circulars

Start Date: 6 May 2008
Finish Date: 11 May 2008

This was one of those projects that came together eerily well, on it's own, with very little planning. I had just finished spinning a batch of Shetland that I becom very fond of. I had a good amount of it - about 9 oz. of aran weight - and didn't want to knit a small project, but knew there wasn't enough for anything substantial. A few day's earlier my sister-in-law had sent me this wool sweater she had picked up in Portland from a thrift store. When the vest urge hit me hard, the handspun and the sweater were sitting quietly next to each other in the corner when the big yellow light bulb appeared over my head.

I swatched a small square, striping the two wools together and really loved how it felt and how the colors looked together. After I had my gauge, I was off and running. The rest is all kind of a blur.

Vests are wonderful - it's like taking all the thrilling parts of sweater knitting and condensing them down into an efficient summary. No sleeve monotony (the second one undoubtedly causes a temporary lapse of excitement in my process), very little shaping, and steeking, means essentially knitting a tube on autopilot with intermittent technique shifts to spice things up. Just when all that stockinette is starting to wear on you? Armholes. And when you're ready for a little more? Neck Opening. Before you have a chance to get bored? Shoulder shaping. And bam, you have a steek-ready garment. Once you're at this point, nothing can stop the steek-induced excitement and seeing the odd shaped conical tube bloom into its vest-shape is worth every stitch. It's a great rhythm.

As for a pattern, I didn't really use one. If you're comfortable with seamless sweater construction, it's an easy jump to wing one of these. I recommend using Knitting in the Old Way by Priscilla Gibson Roberts as a reference. This is by far one of the most well-loved books in the my library, and if you're a sweater constructo-phile like me, this is essential reading. I also referenced EZ's Knitting Workshop to compare her armhole and neck opening specifications (vague but useful). Vests need a slightly more exaggerated armhole depth (mine was about 10.5" before knitting in the armhole ribbing) than their sweater counterparts, but other than that, measurement-wise things are essentially the same.

I worked a "slip 2 as if to knit, k1, pass 2 slipped stitches over" centered decrease every other round on the neck ribbing to create the central ridge at the bottom of the v-shapd opening. I used both tubular cast-on and bind off for all the ribbing to add that special finishing touch. Where ribbing is concerned, this is my favorite starting/finishing technique

Now, lets talk a little about steeking - many of you have e-mailed me questions about my method. I'm a die-hard believer in the traditional crocheted steek. I'm anti putting a sewing machine to my knitting and I love the finish and process of securing everything by hand and with wool. I steeked this project in the exact same manner as my Saddle Shoulder Aran Cardigan last year. [Check my April '07 Archives for an exhaustive amount of photos on this steeking method]

This is what the facings look like on the inside.
If you feel an innate desire to steek - do it! It isn't scary, if you play by the rules, and it's really, REALLY fun. And in my opinion, it makes garment knitting much more intuitive and enjoyable. I'm not a big fan of purling, so it's a technique that I like to employ whenever possible. The definitive online steeking compendium is Eunny Jang's and can be found here. Everything you need to know is there, so no excuses for all of you who sent me guilty e-mails admitting to your masochistic urges to cut your knitting.

I've never been a vest wearer, in fact I can't ever remember owning one, but now I'm a changed man. I've already found this thing very useful for keeping warm without overheating. It's very rain-jacket friendly and looks good layering with a lot of different things. Most of all, though, I think I just like having handspun on my person at all times.

I'll be out of town from tomorrow (Thursday) through Sunday - I'm taking a little vacation. When I come back - I have more finished knits to share. Until then, good knitting.

Post-Bath

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Sun, 18 May 2008 15:43:00 +0000

The vest is done and came out great. Final wrap up in next post!

Gimme the Good Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Fri, 16 May 2008 15:00:00 +0000

Watson, Ready the Shears

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:08:00 +0000

More cutting fun coming soon!

Knitting, How I Love You

noreply@blogger.com (j a r e d) — Mon, 12 May 2008 23:50:00 +0000

My knitting and I have been enjoying a long-overdue reunion over the last few days. Really, it's more like a second honeymoon. I've been an absolute glutton with my wool and needles , choosing knitting over literally anything else (friends, laundry, eating... nothing is safe!).

I was doing so well taking care of languishing projects and cleaning up loose ends. I thought my annual spring cleaning of stash would help me get a realistic perspective on both current and future knitting, while giving me the sense and control to conjure a game-plan for finishing WIPs. Wrong. Quite the opposite happened, in fact. I uncovered many long-forgotten stash jewels, falling prey to many a fiber spell. I must have blacked out for an afternoon, because when I woke up I was surrounded by multiple new projects. I blame Ravelry. I always blame Ravelry.

I wasn't even sure where to begin with blogging, there's so much going on all of a sudden. And, I actually have time to tell you about it. I think I'll take the haphazard route of random-project-photo-flashing?

The Garter Stitch Love Fest never stops around here. I'm still chipping away at the big afghan.

I had to send for more yarn - this thing is a true beast of wool. This is EZ's Garter Stitch Afghan from The Opinionated Knitter - pictured is half of the finished product, seamed together. The pattern is worked in 4 pieces. I'm about a quarter of the way through the fourth and final piece. With chunky yarn held double, I'll be hard pressed to find a warmer blanket than this come winter time.

As for sweater knitting...

I'm still plugging away on Na Craga, although it is truly slow going. Really, that's no problem - it's rare that I tire from having so much righteous cabel-ry around. I'm ready to start the sleeves, which caused a temporary pause in the process, allowing for a few new projects to wedge their way in. Projects that don't require sleeves.

When Vests Attack. I've never been much of a vest fan, but as has happened so many times before, knitting has slowly worn down yet another of my garment prejudices. The other day, I had an all-consuming urge to knit a vest. No idea where it came from, but when the knitting muse comes a-calling, I try not to stand in her way.

The vest sort of fell into place on it's own. I had just finished spinning a bunch of Adrian's beautiful shetland and it was really burning a hole in my stash. I had more than enough for a smaller project, but not enough for a garment.

Mere days before, my sister-in-law sent me a thrifted wool tweed sweater from Ireland that she picked up in Portland for a whopping two dollars. As I was harvesting all that glorious Irish wool, I realized the weight was just the same as my shetland handspun. The vest bug bit and everything became dizzyingly clear...

I'm winging the pattern, knitting it in the round with steeked armholes and v-neck opening. And can't put it down. I'm having a blast. You'll see more soon.

Also, lace:

I ran across a discreet skein of fingering weight merino/tencel from Dave at Cabin Cove and started knitting this smoke ring almost immediately, which I find terribly beautiful. It's the Flared Lace Smoke Ring from the folks at Heartstrings Fiber Arts and I'm loving every stitch.

The craziest thing is there are MORE projects. They're everywhere. It's a true case of knitting schizophrenia. I'm all over the place, and while this type of knitting behavior usually puts me on edge, lately I'm thrilled by it.

More soon. Very soon. (I'm neglecting my knitting)