I have had some ups and downs interrupting my knitting lately. I had ankle pain (down), a busy holiday (up), knitting ennui (down), Christmas celebrations (up), a super intense and stressful work project (down), family board game evenings (up), a flare-up of wrist pain (down), and now, finally, I am settling down and getting some knitting done again.
Because the girls will be heading home next week, I have been concentrating on the pullover for Emma, with the intention of finishing it before she leaves. (You can find sweater details in this earlier post.) Emma’s pullover is worked in an aran weight wool combined with a lace-weight strand of mohair to give a bulky-weight gauge of 13.5 stitches per 4″/10cm. While the fabric it produces is really nice, I find that the process of combining two strands of yarn, one of them mohair, has some inherent technical difficulties. I will be knitting along, and suddenly this happens:
Or maybe this:
I spend as much time untangling the yarns as I do knitting. I secretly suspect that there is an easy way to do this, and I just haven’t figured it out. All the cool knitting kids must have this sorted, as every other sweater I see these days is knit with a strand of mohair thrown in for good measure. (I also secretly suspect this is a plot by yarn companies to make us buy twice as much yarn; I wrote about this previously in this post.)
I am working on the back, which is just a giant rectangle, and with this big yarn and big needles, it should be really fast. The pullover comes in one size only, and that size seems pretty big. Here is Emma (wearing the lovely Tinder cardigan I knit for her a few years ago, blogged here) holding up the mostly finished back:
It is at least twice her size! Nevertheless, I have high hopes that it will look great on her once it’s all pieced together. I’ve just picked up the neckline edging, so I’m getting close. Watch this space!
Here is my pick of patterns that have caught my eye lately. They are all very interesting, with cool stitch patterns or constructions that engage the brain as well as the eye.
The more I look at this, the more interesting it becomes. Designed by the incomparable Norah Gaughan, this uses mosaic stitch with two different weight yarns – a chunky and a DK weight. With mosaic stitch you only knit with one yarn at a time, so you can do fairly complicated-looking colourwork without stranding. I like mosaic stitch (here is a sweater I knit using the technique), but the idea of doing it with very different weights of yarn really appeals. The organic structure it reveals is inspired by Portland’s bridges.
These big, chunky, cables are fantastic! And, like the above cardigan, the more I look at them, the more they pop. But I have to admit that what really drew me into this pattern was the description on the Ravelry pattern page (see link above): “Tsubaki – camellia japonica – is an epaulet sleeve pullover with large, gorgeous cables, worked without ever cutting yarn. Enjoy the original construction of this sweater!” I am now totally intrigued. I can’t even begin to figure out how that could work, and I have to know! The technical knit nerd in me can’t resist. The fact that the sweater is gorgeous is like frosting on the cake.
I am not usually a fan of chunky knits. In particular, I find that the finishing never looks neat. But this one has gorgeous finishing details. Just look at the line of the shoulder and the very elegant edging. Brandi Harper only has a few patterns published, but they are really eye-catching. (Just look at this dress made in super chunky wool; it brings out the Judy Jetson in me!) I am definitely going to be watching her work. (I am also completely captivated by the smile in this photo; I want to be her friend!)
Another really beautiful stitch pattern is used to an interesting effect by Stephanie Earp. It manages to look very etheral – with the delicacy of the mohair contrasting with the variegated silk. The sweater seems to glow in these gorgeous tones. Stephanie mentions that the sweater has a tendency to catch, so this is a special occasions piece. This would match almost any other block colour, and you would really make an entrance wearing this. Stephanie has been doing some interesting things with colour lately, which has put her firmly on my radar.
This amazing cabled sweater is knit in a light fingering weight wool. Can you imagine knitting so many cables in such delicate yarn? It is knit top down in one piece with raglan sleeves, and the way that the cabled details are incorporated into the shaping is brilliant. I also like the sleeves. The slight cuff and the intricate cables down the side make for a subtle but stunning sleeve. This would look good in any colour, though I personally would stay away from variegated yarns to keep the cables firmly as the focus. The neutral is a fantastic choice, and this particular yarn is not just called Dry Desert Camel, but is 100% camel! How cool!
I just LOVE the shape on this one. Its a very playful design, with really clever details. The slip stitches in the pattern compress the fabric on the one side to create the asymmetric drape. I could see myself wearing this to work, out to dinner, or even for a walk on the beach. This is made of silk, but would probably look great in linen as well. The pattern includes options for a longer sweater or for wider sleeves, so you can customize it to suit you.
That’s my selection of great sweaters for this month. I am currently unable to knit due to my de Quervain’s tenosynovitis acting up. My family tells me this makes me very grumpy. I console myself by adding patterns to my queue, which has grown by leaps and bounds, and by being extra grumpy just to annoy them.
As the decade was closing down, we spent a glorious day out in the sunshine at Greys Court, a National Trust property near our home in Oxfordshire, England. I snapped a photo of Leah, Doug, and Emma sitting on a bench:
Today, I was looking at this photo and it suddenly reminded me of a photo taken long ago. I searched through photo albums to find it. Here it is:
This is the three of them at Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam, Germany. I believe it was taken in 1997. We lived just 300 metres from where this shot was taken and Sanssouci (which means “no worries”), with all of its lovely palaces, follies, and gardens, was our back yard for a decade while the girls were small.
We wish you a healthy and happy New Year, with no worries. From Doug, Emma, Leah and Kelly at Knitigating Circumstances.
